📣 The Name Game: Trump vs. the Commanders
(Satire • Political Commentary • Football, Sports, DC
🚨 Once again, President Trump is at war—this time, with football.
He has inserted himself into a cultural controversy, demanding that everyone bend to his latest whim. This time, his ire targets the Washington Commanders—formerly the Redskins—for the unforgivable act of changing their name in 2020 to avoid offending Native Americans.
In a flurry of posts on Truth Social, Trump called the current name “ridiculous” and insisted the team “IMMEDIATELY” revert to its old moniker. He even threatened to block the Commanders’ planned $3.7 billion stadium deal in D.C. unless they comply.
Can he block the deal? Perhaps. The RFK Stadium site sits on federally controlled land, and while Congress transferred oversight to the District earlier this year, Trump has hinted at asserting executive authority to stall the project.
Does he have support? Probably not. Most Americans—including many fans—have moved on. The Commanders’ ownership, led by Josh Harris, has stated unequivocally that the name will not be revisited. Even Mayor Muriel Bowser and City Council members remain focused on the stadium’s economic and civic promise, not Trump’s tantrum.
We’ll see whether the Commanders appease the increasingly erratic President—or join the chorus of companies, communities, and citizens who’ve had enough of performative threats and culture war theater.
🎭 The Satirical Spectacle
President Trump emerges from the Oval Office—perhaps via trapdoor or fog machine—to weigh in on the most pressing crisis in modern governance: the name of a sports team. In a bold expansion of executive duties, he now seems to believe stadium branding falls under Article II of the Constitution.
For decades, team owners made decisions about names, schedules, and concrete upgrades without wondering, “What would the President think?” Not even in D.C. did anyone expect the White House to chime in on halftime choreography or parking lot resurfacing. And yet—here we are.
Trump’s threats could derail years of redevelopment progress, all to soothe personal nostalgia or distract from slightly more pressing matters (say, federal agency purges or mass immigration raids). The region, already limping from his aggressive downsizing of government, may now be punished for the sin of… selecting a different mascot.
And his objection isn’t rooted in principle—it’s based on a sweeping claim of “massive public support,” drawn, we assume, from the Presidential Dream Journal or a half-remembered barbecue in 1987. There is no groundswell. No clamor. Just a manufactured molehill dressed up as a mountain—complete with flags, anthems, and possibly fireworks.
This fits neatly into a larger performance: meddling in the Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian, National Parks, DEI policies, and Blue States resisting his authoritarian impulses. It’s a magician’s flourish—point at the mascot so no one notices the Epstein smoke cloud or the gaping crater left by university budget cuts.
🧨 The Last Redskin Revival Ceremony
(or, How to Break Ground Without Breaking Reality)
One humid July afternoon, under the shadow of the crumbling RFK Stadium and a billboard flickering only the letters R and K, a crowd gathered for Trump’s ceremonial restoration rally. He descended from a cherry picker outfitted with a golden escalator. His entourage hurled foam tomahawks. A speaker system—rigged from old Redskins gear and powered by indignation—blared as he declared:
“We reclaim what they stole from America: mascots with vague ethnic origins and parking lots with spiritual resonance.”
Redevelopment was no longer urban renewal—it was a psychogeographic ritual of naming, erasing, and renaming.
The city council was divided: some demanded green space and justice, others proposed a memorial library shaped like a football helmet. A third faction, The Landback Tailgaters, insisted every concession stand serve reparations with extra mustard.
A bulldozer named Integrity sat idle at the site’s edge. Each morning it wept diesel tears while playing “Hail to the Redskins” in reverse.
Congress convened inside a giant inflatable stadium dome—repurposed from a canceled Super Bowl. The hearing opened with a reenactment of Washington crossing the Delaware, dressed as a quarterback aboard a hot dog stand sailing down the Anacostia.
Mayor Bowser proposed compromise:
“We’ll call it RFK again—but this time it stands for Really Freaking Kafkaesque.”
Trump wandered the bleachers, whispering to the ghosts of mascots past. The Commanders didn’t change their name. But the stadium changed its soul. And in D.C., that was enough for one more funding cycle.
🏠 Personal Note: My Seat at the Circus
My family owns a row house on East Capitol Street, just four blocks from RFK Stadium—close enough to hear echoes of both touchdowns and tantrums. The long-overdue redevelopment plan is spectacular: housing, retail, restaurants, hotels, transit upgrades (including a new Metro stop), and a scenic path linking the Anacoustic and Potomac rivers to the city’s other stadiums.
It’s not just practical—it’s poetic. A vision of D.C. finally catching up to itself.
Which is why it’s maddening that this transformation could be derailed by a presidential whim. Imagine decades of planning undone by a man who once mistook the National Archives for a themed steakhouse.
🔥 Culture War Highlights
From the Left: Critics say Trump’s move amounts to extortion-by-tantrum.
PBS NewsHour contextualized the threat within broader racial justice movements.
Axios spotlighted political fallout and local response.
NBC Washington focused on governance and economic impact.
From the Middle:
ESPN and CBS emphasized the logistical hurdles and the NFL’s general indifference to executive interference.
Forbes analyzed the financial implications of Trump’s meddling.
From the Right:
Some outlets called the name change “an attack on tradition.”
Fox News and Benzinga highlighted fan support and Trump’s populist framing.
Conservative lawmakers expressed nostalgia for the old logo but stopped short of endorsing a full reversal.
“🏟️ RFK Stadium Redevelopment Overview
Project Scope:
A $3.7 billion redevelopment plan aims to bring the Commanders back to D.C. by building a new 65,000-seat stadium on the RFK site.
The broader plan includes 170 acres of mixed-use development: housing, retail, green space, and a sports complex.
The Commanders would invest $2.7 billion, while the city contributes $1.1 billion, including $395 million reallocated from a canceled jail project.
Timeline: | Phase | Estimated Date | |——-|—————-| | Council Approval Vote | Originally targeted for July 2025, now delayed to September | | Demolition of RFK Structures | Late 2025 or Early 2026 | | Stadium Construction Begins | Fall/Winter 2026 | | Stadium Completion | Targeted for 2030 |
Current Status:
The D.C. Council missed its July deadline to finalize the deal, ending the exclusivity window with the Commanders.
Public hearings are scheduled for late July, but final votes may not occur until after the August recess.
Mayor Bowser remains optimistic, while Council Chair Mendelson has voiced concerns over public spending and wants more time for review.
Reader Reflection
So here we are — staring down a headline that sounds like political Mad Libs:
“Former President threatens NFL stadium over team name change he doesn’t like.”
The real question: Will America keep indulging these ego-driven spectacles?
Or will we finally flag this nonsense for unsportsmanlike conduct?
I served as a consular officer for the U.S. State Department from 1991 to 2016, with assignments in Seoul, Bangkok, Mumbai, Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, and Madrid. During much of that time, I focused on immigrant visas and visa fraud investigations. I quickly came to three sobering conclusions: the immigration system was fundamentally broken; there was no political will to fix it—or even agreement on how to do so; and it was ripe for exploitation by applicants and crooked immigration attorneys.
In most cases, if the paperwork looks legit, and the applicant has been well schooled they will get their visa because even if there is obvious fraudulent indications it was very difficult to deny the visa, given time constrains and budgetary constrains and lack of support for combatting fraudulent applications. Although that has changed a lot since I left the service, it is still difficult to deny immigrant visa applications and many fraudulent applications make it through the broken system..
The current massive deportation drive strikes me as counterproductive. It’s a classic case of throwing the baby out with the bathwater—and it’s doomed to failure. I imagine a President eventually coming to this realization and making a course correction, much like President Reagan did when, faced with similar challenges, he reversed course and agreed to an amnesty for undocumented immigrants. I think the time is ripe to consider a similar approach. In the paragraphs that follow, I outline what I hope our President will consider—reforms I believe would resonate with much of the public. Of course, the Stephen Millers of the world will continue pushing for a draconian “deport all the brown people” policy, even if it means constructing a permanent police state. I am convinced that such an outcome is, in fact, the endgame for their Christian white nationalist agenda.
Time for an amnesty
I’ve long supported a limited amnesty built on practical and humane principles. Those who are undocumented but gainfully employed, have no criminal record, and speak English should be eligible to convert to lawful permanent resident (LPR) status. Priority should be given to individuals married to U.S. citizens and to parents of American children.
Additionally, Iraqi and Afghan nationals who assisted the United States during conflict—as well as Ukrainian refugees fleeing war—deserve our protection and the opportunity to stay. Every undocumented immigrant should be required to register, and those meeting clearly defined criteria should be granted legal status following a thorough review. Those who do not qualify would be subject to removal.
What we must end are the mass dragnet operations and the proliferation of detention centers. We are better than that. A compassionate, orderly process is not only morally sound—it reflects the reality that our economy depends on immigrant labor. Most undocumented individuals already contribute meaningfully to our society.
Lastly, we must enact comprehensive immigration reform to ensure a consistent and legal flow of new immigrants. That includes implementing and enforcing E-Verify for all employers, and penalizing those who violate the system.
President Trump’s Reverse Course
President Trump has doubled down on anti-immigrant rhetoric, announcing an immediate freeze on legal immigration and the termination of the Diversity Visa (DV) program—pending the enactment of a sweeping overhaul of U.S. immigration law.
the goal is to totally reform the Broken Immigration system.
The freeze includes exceptions for married immigrants sponsored by American citizens or lawful permanent residents (LPRs), along with a provision for temporary work permits available to agricultural, construction, and hospitality workers who meet the following criteria:
Must pass a basic English conversation test
No criminal record beyond minor traffic violations
Documented, consistent work history in the U.S.
Priority given to spouses and parents of U.S. citizens
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) revived
TPS will be reinstated for nationals of Cuba, Venezuela, Haiti, Central America, Afghanistan, Iraq, North Korea, and Ukraine. Qualifying individuals who meet the same criteria above may be granted permanent status, followed by:
Eligibility to petition for lawful permanent residency (after 2 years)
Eligibility to apply for citizenship (after 5 years)
All applicants must report to a local ICE office by year-end. Failure to meet the qualifications or deadline will result in deportation.
All other undocumented immigrants will be identified and deported.
Not Amnesty, But a Reset
President Trump has denied that the measure constitutes amnesty, instead framing it as recognition that the U.S. “needs and values immigrants—just not chaos.”
Early polling suggests 70% of the public supports the new plan.
Ripple Effects Across the Nation
Community colleges and adult education programs experience a surge in demand for ESL classes. Congress passes emergency legislation endorsing the new framework as an interim policy, with a promise to deliver a comprehensive immigration overhaul within one year.
The new law includes:
Elimination of the DV program and the F4 sibling immigration category
Removal of per-country caps
Reorientation of immigration pathways around employment, education, and skills
Mandatory English proficiency tests for all applicants
Background screening to exclude individuals hostile to American values or affiliated with terrorist groups
Admission limited to applicants with a high school diploma or college degree
International students who earn U.S. degrees will become eligible to apply for permanent residency upon graduation.
Streamlined Visa System
Visa categories are simplified into two classifications: Non-Immigrants and Immigrants.
Non-Immigrant Visa Types:
A – High-level diplomatic or official visitors
B – Business or tourist visitors
C – Temporary workers (excluding D)
D – Additional diplomatic staff, including UN officials
Exchange visitors
F – Students (convertible to LPR status upon graduation)
Religious workers
J – Journalists
L – Intra-company transferees
M – Medical patients
N – Nurses and medical professionals
P – Performers
S – Athletes (for competitive events)
Immigrant Visa Types:
IR1 – Spouses, children, and parents of U.S. citizens
IR2 – Spouses, children, and parents of LPRs
F1 – Skilled workers
F2 – Unskilled workers
F3 – Investors (minimum $500,000)
The Sunset of the F4 Category
Siblings of U.S. citizens in the F4 queue will have one year to reapply. To qualify for immigration with spouses and minor children, applicants must:
Speak English
Hold a high school diploma or college degree
Possess employable skills
Secure a five-year sponsorship agreement from their U.S. citizen relative
No new applications will be accepted after the calendar year closes.
There are millions of people stuck in this category, many of them waiting ten years or more to “legally” immigrate, many of them commit visa fraud to spend up processing, and others simply overstay their visas. Eliminating this category will go a long way to cleaning up the broken immigration system, and offering those who have English skills, education and process employable skills a path way to legally immigrate is only fair.
Elimination of the K Finance Visa Category
I would eliminate this category because it is so riddled with fraudulent applications, including internet scammers. If an American citizen wants to marry a foreign national who resides overseas, he or she should be willing to go overseas and marry his spouse and then petition for his or her spouse to join them in the US.
Author’s Note:
Whether you read this as reform or restriction, the message is clear: America is redrawing its borders. What remains to be seen is who will be left inside—and what kind of country they’ll inherit.
Overview of the Immigration Crackdown Debate
The Trump administration has intensified its immigration enforcement, with ICE Director Tom Homan promising to deport all undocumented immigrants. This escalation has sparked legal challenges, protests, and a polarized media response.
Key developments include:
Mass deportation efforts targeting long-residing undocumented immigrants.
Legal pushback from federal judges, especially in California and New York.
Political tension between federal agencies and sanctuary cities.
Public protests in major cities like Los Angeles and Chicago.
📊Enforcement Trends:
ICE arrests have surged under the current administration, with over 56,000 people in custody
Yet 71.7% of detainees have no criminal convictions, raising concerns about enforcement priorities
📰 Articles Supporting Immigration Visa Reform
Congress Quietly Revives Immigration Reform Push
Over 300 bipartisan immigration bills introduced since 2015, though only 5% became law
Recent proposals like S.1589 aim to reform immigration parole and address humanitarian protections
Highlights the lack of comprehensive reform and the dominance of employment-based tweaks
Reflects growing frustration with outdated visa categories and enforcement-heavy approaches
The Dignity Act of 2025
A bipartisan bill introduced by Reps. Salazar and Escobar to overhaul the immigration system
Proposes earned legal status for long-term undocumented immigrants without offering blanket amnesty
Includes mandatory E-Verify, asylum reform, and updates to employment and student visa programs
Offers a “Dignity Program”—a 7-year path to legal status based on restitution and good conduct
Recognizes the economic and social contributions of immigrants while emphasizing border security
Council on Foreign Relations Immigration Backgrounder
Details decades of failed attempts at comprehensive reform
Notes that executive actions have increasingly replaced legislative solutions
Emphasizes the need for updated laws to reflect modern humanitarian and economic realities
📊 Latest U.S. Immigration Statistics (2025)
Immigrant Population:
As of 2023, 47.8 million immigrants lived in the U.S., making up 14.3% of the population
Top countries of origin: Mexico (23%), India (6%), China (5%), Philippines (4%)
Legal Immigration:
In FY 2023, over 1 million people obtained legal permanent residency
58% through family reunification, 27% employment-based, 5% asylum, 4% diversity lottery
Undocumented Immigrants:
Estimated 11 million undocumented individuals in the U.S.
Visa overstays now outnumber illegal border crossings
Public Opinion:
Public Opinion Polling Highlights
Recent polls show a complex and shifting landscape:
Gallup (July 2025):
79% of Americans say immigration is good for the country.
Support for reducing immigration dropped from 55% to 30% since 2024.
Only 38% support mass deportations, down from 47% last year.
I served as a consular officer for the U.S. State Department from 1991 to 2016, with assignments in Seoul, Bangkok, Mumbai, Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, and Madrid. During much of that time, I focused on immigrant visas and visa fraud investigations. I quickly came to three sobering conclusions: the immigration system was fundamentally broken; there was no political will to fix it—or even agreement on how to do so; and it was ripe for exploitation by applicants and crooked immigration attorneys.
In most cases, if the paperwork looks legit, and the applicant has been well schooled they will get their visa because even if there is obvious fraudulent indications it was very difficult to deny the visa, given time constrains and budgetary constrains and lack of support for combatting fraudulent applications. Although that has changed a lot since I left the service, it is still difficult to deny immigrant visa applications and many fraudulent applications make it through the broken system..
The current massive deportation drive strikes me as counterproductive. It’s a classic case of throwing the baby out with the bathwater—and it’s doomed to failure. I imagine a President eventually coming to this realization and making a course correction, much like President Reagan did when, faced with similar challenges, he reversed course and agreed to an amnesty for undocumented immigrants.
I think the time is ripe to consider a similar approach. In the paragraphs that follow, I outline what I hope our President will consider—reforms I believe would resonate with much of the public. Of course, the Stephen Millers of the world will continue pushing for a draconian “deport all the brown people” policy, even if it means constructing a permanent police state. I am convinced that such an outcome is, in fact, the endgame for their Christian white nationalist agenda.
Time for an amnesty
I’ve long supported a limited amnesty built on practical and humane principles. Those who are undocumented but gainfully employed, have no criminal record, and speak English should be eligible to convert to lawful permanent resident (LPR) status. Priority should be given to individuals married to U.S. citizens and to parents of American children.
Additionally, Iraqi and Afghan nationals who assisted the United States during conflict—as well as Ukrainian refugees fleeing war—deserve our protection and the opportunity to stay. Every undocumented immigrant should be required to register, and those meeting clearly defined criteria should be granted legal status following a thorough review. Those who do not qualify would be subject to removal.
What we must end are the mass dragnet operations and the proliferation of detention centers. We are better than that. A compassionate, orderly process is not only morally sound—it reflects the reality that our economy depends on immigrant labor. Most undocumented individuals already contribute meaningfully to our society.
Lastly, we must enact comprehensive immigration reform to ensure a consistent and legal flow of new immigrants. That includes implementing and enforcing E-Verify for all employers, and penalizing those who violate the system.
President Trump’s Reverse Course
President Trump has doubled down on anti-immigrant rhetoric, announcing an immediate freeze on legal immigration and the termination of the Diversity Visa (DV) program—pending the enactment of a sweeping overhaul of U.S. immigration law.
the goal is to totally reform the Broken Immigration system.
The freeze includes exceptions for married immigrants sponsored by American citizens or lawful permanent residents (LPRs), along with a provision for temporary work permits available to agricultural, construction, and hospitality workers who meet the following criteria:
Must pass a basic English conversation test
No criminal record beyond minor traffic violations
Documented, consistent work history in the U.S.
Priority given to spouses and parents of U.S. citizens
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) revived
TPS will be reinstated for nationals of Cuba, Venezuela, Haiti, Central America, Afghanistan, Iraq, North Korea, and Ukraine. Qualifying individuals who meet the same criteria above may be granted permanent status, followed by:
Eligibility to petition for lawful permanent residency (after 2 years)
Eligibility to apply for citizenship (after 5 years)
All applicants must report to a local ICE office by year-end. Failure to meet the qualifications or deadline will result in deportation.
All other undocumented immigrants will be identified and deported.
Not Amnesty, But a Reset
President Trump has denied that the measure constitutes amnesty, instead framing it as recognition that the U.S. “needs and values immigrants—just not chaos.”
Early polling suggests 70% of the public supports the new plan.
Ripple Effects Across the Nation
Community colleges and adult education programs experience a surge in demand for ESL classes. Congress passes emergency legislation endorsing the new framework as an interim policy, with a promise to deliver a comprehensive immigration overhaul within one year.
The new law includes:
Elimination of the DV program and the F4 sibling immigration category
Removal of per-country caps
Reorientation of immigration pathways around employment, education, and skills
Mandatory English proficiency tests for all applicants
Background screening to exclude individuals hostile to American values or affiliated with terrorist groups
Admission limited to applicants with a high school diploma or college degree
International students who earn U.S. degrees will become eligible to apply for permanent residency upon graduation.
Streamlined Visa System
Visa categories are simplified into two classifications: Non-Immigrants and Immigrants.
Non-Immigrant Visa Types:
A – High-level diplomatic or official visitors
B – Business or tourist visitors
C – Temporary workers (excluding D)
D – Additional diplomatic staff, including UN officials
Exchange visitors
F – Students (convertible to LPR status upon graduation)
Religious workers
J – Journalists
L – Intra-company transferees
M – Medical patients
N – Nurses and medical professionals
P – Performers
S – Athletes (for competitive events)
Immigrant Visa Types:
IR1 – Spouses, children, and parents of U.S. citizens
IR2 – Spouses, children, and parents of LPRs
F1 – Skilled workers
F2 – Unskilled workers
F3 – Investors (minimum $500,000)
The Sunset of the F4 Category
Siblings of U.S. citizens in the F4 queue will have one year to reapply. To qualify for immigration with spouses and minor children, applicants must:
Speak English
Hold a high school diploma or college degree
Possess employable skills
Secure a five-year sponsorship agreement from their U.S. citizen relative
No new applications will be accepted after the calendar year closes.
There are millions of people stuck in this category, many of them waiting ten years or more to “legally” immigrate, many of them commit visa fraud to spend up processing, and others simply overstay their visas. Eliminating this category will go a long way to cleaning up the broken immigration system, and offering those who have English skills, education and process employable skills a path way to legally immigrate is only fair.
Elimination of the K Finance Visa Category
I would eliminate this category because it is so riddled with fraudulent applications, including internet scammers. If an American citizen wants to marry a foreign national who resides overseas, he or she should be willing to go overseas and marry his spouse and then petition for his or her spouse to join them in the US.
Author’s Note:
Whether you read this as reform or restriction, the message is clear: America is redrawing its borders. What remains to be seen is who will be left inside—and what kind of country they’ll inherit.
Overview of the Immigration Crackdown Debate
The Trump administration has intensified its immigration enforcement, with ICE Director Tom Homan promising to deport all undocumented immigrants. This escalation has sparked legal challenges, protests, and a polarized media response.
Key developments include:
Mass deportation efforts targeting long-residing undocumented immigrants.
Legal pushback from federal judges, especially in California and New York.
Political tension between federal agencies and sanctuary cities.
Public protests in major cities like Los Angeles and Chicago.
📊Enforcement Trends:
ICE arrests have surged under the current administration, with over 56,000 people in custody
Yet 71.7% of detainees have no criminal convictions, raising concerns about enforcement priorities
📰 Articles Supporting Immigration Visa Reform
Congress Quietly Revives Immigration Reform Push
Over 300 bipartisan immigration bills introduced since 2015, though only 5% became law
Recent proposals like S.1589 aim to reform immigration parole and address humanitarian protections
Highlights the lack of comprehensive reform and the dominance of employment-based tweaks
Reflects growing frustration with outdated visa categories and enforcement-heavy approaches
The Dignity Act of 2025
A bipartisan bill introduced by Reps. Salazar and Escobar to overhaul the immigration system
Proposes earned legal status for long-term undocumented immigrants without offering blanket amnesty
Includes mandatory E-Verify, asylum reform, and updates to employment and student visa programs
Offers a “Dignity Program”—a 7-year path to legal status based on restitution and good conduct
Recognizes the economic and social contributions of immigrants while emphasizing border security
Council on Foreign Relations Immigration Backgrounder
Details decades of failed attempts at comprehensive reform
Notes that executive actions have increasingly replaced legislative solutions
Emphasizes the need for updated laws to reflect modern humanitarian and economic realities
📊 Latest U.S. Immigration Statistics (2025)
Immigrant Population:
As of 2023, 47.8 million immigrants lived in the U.S., making up 14.3% of the population
Top countries of origin: Mexico (23%), India (6%), China (5%), Philippines (4%)
Legal Immigration:
In FY 2023, over 1 million people obtained legal permanent residency
58% through family reunification, 27% employment-based, 5% asylum, 4% diversity lottery
Undocumented Immigrants:
Estimated 11 million undocumented individuals in the U.S.
Visa overstays now outnumber illegal border crossings
Public Opinion:
Public Opinion Polling Highlights
Recent polls show a complex and shifting landscape:
Gallup (July 2025):
79% of Americans say immigration is good for the country.
Support for reducing immigration dropped from 55% to 30% since 2024.
Only 38% support mass deportations, down from 47% last year.
This is a shout-out to all the Americans who answered the call to serve in the Peace Corps. As some of you know I served in Gapyeong, Korea from 1979 to 1981 working as a tuberculous control worker in a rural health center. Serving in the Peace Corps changed my life in so many ways. It led to a life-long fascination with South Korea, including becoming reasonably fluent in the language, meeting and marrying my wife whom I met after my service ended, and a MA degree in Korean studies from the University of Washington in 1986. It also led me to join the Foreign Service and serve in the Embassy from 1991 to 1993 and serving on the Korea desk from 1994 to 1996.
Before joining the State Department I taught ESL for the US Army, for the Korean Consolidated Administration school, and later at Kyunghee University for three years and Government and Asian Studies for the University of Maryland in Korea.
Title:The Last Volunteer: Dispatches from the Disbanded Peace Corps
Tone: Satirical, reflective, dystopian Style: Blog-style narrative with historical and personal interjections
Structure:
Title:The Last Volunteer: Dispatches from the Disbanded Peace Corps
In 1980, I served in the Peace Corps working in a public health center as a tuberculous control worker in Gapyeong, a small town in the mountains two hours from Seoul. I shared kimchi recipes with elders, learned the art of bowing without bruising my pride, and discovered that diplomacy often begins with a shared meal.
We were told we were ambassadors of peace.
Now, apparently, we were just wasting taxpayer money.
Chapter 2: The Decree
It came on a Tuesday. Trump stood at a golden podium flanked by ICE agents and a bald eagle wearing aviators.
“The Peace Corps is hereby disbanded,” he declared. “We don’t need volunteers spreading peace. We need patriots sealing borders.”
The budget was rescinded. Volunteers were ordered home. The Peace Corps website redirected to a recruitment page for ICE.
Chapter 3: The Fallout
Returned volunteers were stripped of their federal hiring preference. One was reportedly escorted out of a USDA interview for wearing a tie-dye shirt and quoting Mandela.
Peace Corps offices were converted into detention intake centers. The slogan “Life is calling” was replaced with “Compliance is mandatory.”
My old training center in Korea? Rumor has it it’s now a drone calibration site.
Chapter 4: The Broader Purge
The Presidential Management Fellows program was canceled next. “We don’t need managers,” Trump said. “We need enforcers.”
The State Department announced it would no longer publish annual human rights reports. “We prefer vibes-based diplomacy,” said the new Undersecretary for Global Branding.
The U.S. withdrew from the International Labour Organization. All ILO conventions were declared null and void. Labor rights, it seems, were too socialist.
Chapter 5: Toronto Rising
Late-night comics were fired. Journalists silenced. And somewhere in the chaos, Toronto became the new capital of dissent.
Former Peace Corps volunteers, comedians, and exiled diplomats now broadcast nightly from a converted Tim Hortons.
Their motto: Still serving—just not sanctioned.
Chapter 6: The Last Volunteer
I served in Korea from 1979 to 1981. We believed in bridges, not walls. We believed that service could change the world.
I still do.
Even if the bridge now leads north to Toronto.
Author’s Note:
This piece is satire. But the memories are real. And so is the fear that idealism is being erased, one program at a time.
If you served, if you dreamed, if you still believe—keep writing. Keep resisting.
Peace isn’t dead. It’s just been defunded.
Along the way, Korea changed so much and is not the country I first learned to love back in 1979. Here are a few of my poetic reflections, followed by additional information on the Peace Corps and my letters to my Congressmen and Senators and the Peace Corps director expressing my frustration over the possibility that the Peace Corps could soon join USAID on the chopping block. I will post any responses I might receive.
Korean Poems
author at a Korean temple 1980?
Korea travels
I first came to Korea in 1979
in the Peace Corps
Stayed in the rural countryside
in the town of Gapeyong
where I worked
in a rural health care center
Where I was one of four non-Koreans
Had to speak Korean to survive
Stayed on in a variety of jobs
Including diplomatic service
I last lived there in 1993.
Non-Korean food was hard to get
Outside of the GI ghettos
English speakers were few
And the country was not foreign-friendly
There were few foreign residents
Most American service members
Some missionary types
Diplomatic corps
A few English teachers
A few ex-pat business people
Most women quit after marriage
As it was a male-dominated society
In the rural countryside
No one knew a woman’s name
They were referred
to as so and so “mom”
Or so and so wife,
Or the generic aunt,
or grandmother
Public transit was just getting going
But traffic was not too bad
Few people could afford cars
Back then the old Korea was still there
And it was a very different place and time
Going through the transition
to the country, it has become
Today’s Korea is a very different place
The rural countryside is deserted
Wilderness areas are coming back
Even wildlife is coming back
In the mountain outback regions
50 percent of the public
Live in the Seoul metro area
Including Kyeongi province
And Incheon city where I reside.
Public transit is among the best
In the world.
Internet fast and cheap
Everywhere connected
Highways are decent but overcrowded
The KTX train is fast and convenient
The Incheon airport one of the best
The choices for food are much better
Used to be it was almost impossible
To find non-Korean food
Outside the GI ghetto towns.
Now it is everywhere
Even saw a Mexican restaurant
In a suburban Busan neighborhood.
In the end
Koreans should be proud
Of all that they have accomplished.
I remain optimistic
That someday the two Koreans
Will become one again
And that they will continue
To advance and grow
But the essence of Korea will remain
Waiting for Korean Springtime
poet Hill Korea
The world peace forest
Stretches five miles
Through a delightful forest
Including a nice lotus pound
A winter watering hole for birds
And a small mountain
I welcome the advent of spring
The cherry trees snowing
The Tulips and roses blooming
After a cold sometimes hard winter
Especially during the COVID pandemic
Which kept so many people
Trapped indoors
As I walk the path
With the love of my life
By my side
Enjoying another springtime
Filled with love and affection
That is why I love Korean springtime.
19 lines
Pastoral free verse
Life in a Korean village
I am living in a Korean village as an exchange student. One day my host family asks me to go to the local health center to tell them to change the father’s medicine, and give me a note, the old medicine, and instructions. I am a little apprehensive, but they told me that was fine since the dragon who controlled the village had approved the request already. I smiled I had met the dragon who seemed to like me which made things in the village go much better. The daughter is cute.
The Peace Corps changed my life Not in the obvious ways That it did
I learned a new language A new culture Met many different people Did some constructive development work
And contributed to friendship Between Koreans and the US
All the usual things that Peace Corps Is supposed to accomplish
But the Peace Corps changed me And I became the man I am now
Because of those two years I spend in the countryside Of South Korea
I went to graduate school I became a diplomat
But most importantly If I had not gone to the Korean peace corps program I never would have met the girl of my dreams The women I was fated to meet
I first met Angela in 1974 When I was in high school
And fell asleep in a class And had the dream that haunted me To this day
In the dream I met a beautiful Asian women Who was speaking to me In a weird language
And then she disappeared Like in Star Trek
And I fell on the floor
“Screaming You are you?”
I continued to have these visions Every month for seven years
I eventually learned
that she was in Korea And so I joined the Peace Corps
to go to Korea To find her
After I finished Peace Corps I stuck around for another year
Thinking I would find her But never did
Just when I was
due to return to the US To go to Graduate school I had the final dream
In this dream She said in Korean
“Don’t worry
you will meet me soon.”
That night getting off the bus In front of me Was the girl in the dream
I looked at her And I knew she was it
And she looked at me And knew I was it
We met up for coffee And we dated
I proposed to her
three days after I met her
And then we married Two months later
Despite her family’s attempts To keep us apart
And we have been
married 43 years And I fall in love with her Over and over again
And I still have the dream When I am alone Or when I am stressed out
I see her standing by the bed Smiling at me
Saying Everything will be alright And it is
and so thinking back on my life My life changed forever
When I left the US To join the Peace Corps
Long Live the Peace Corps
this is a true story of the love of my life. I met her in 1982 when I was teaching in Korea after having finished my Peace Corps service in 1981. We got married two months after we met and have been married 33 years. I still recall the dreams of how I would met her from time to time.
I always thought this would make a great love story movie., perhaps a K Drama?
About 30 years ago, American-style coffee chains Discovered Korea. After the 88 Olympics, Koreans discovered the joy Of real brewed coffee, Hot, Sweet, Neat The rest is history.
hot humid weather in Korea, outside like walking in a sauna.
Most people don’t use air conditioning due to both expenses, fear of air conditioning disease (Which is a real thing).
hanging out at a coffee shop or mall discouraged as COVID continues to spread. Only two people can dine out at night
over 2, 00 cases a day now only 20 percent are fully vaccinated.
temperatures will hit 40 degrees (100 + f) later this week as the monsoon season ends and the August heat begins.
Koreans are learning new words to describe this
heat dome tropical nights Polar vortex Monster typhoons Killing floods Killing heat waves are now common.
used to be that July and August were hot and humid but rarely about 100 dF. Now that is becoming the norm, as global climate change begins hitting Korea hard.
the winters are colder but much shorter. Late January to early February Polar Vortex swept through
the summer is longer starting in May and lasting until mid-September.
Autumn is lasting from Mid-September to Mid-December. Spring just late April to early June
So far no killer wildfires. As the monsoon season Came on time Monson flooding Just before the killer heatwaves
the prompt was to write about the local weather Korea is experiencing a heat dome highs in the 90’s (40 C) real feel close to 100 F, with tropical nights in the 80s F. No relief in sight until late august, the second hottest summer in Korea so far but it will probably break the record heat
When Sam Adams first met her The lady of his dreams
There was as the Koreans Would say
Spark from heart to heart 이심촌심 isimchonsim
truly love at first sight 첫눈에 반하다 cheosnun-e banhada
they both knew that it is just fate
운명 unyoung
that they had met that date.
Two months later They were married It all happened 40 years ago
48 years after She first came To him in his dreams.
the prompt was to incorporate foreign words into a poem I chose Korean which is my best foreign language as I have been struggling to learn it for 43 years
May 18, 2021Venice in Korea “Venice in Korea and other Korean Stream Bed Parks ARA Canal Incheon Over the last decade, Korea has build hundreds of stream bed parks throughout Seoul and Korea. There are great… Jake Cosmos Aller — Venice in Korea. 1.5M ratings 277k ratings See, that’s what the app is perfect for. Sounds perfect Wahhhh, I don’t …
Jun 3, 2021I have reached three milestones. the World According to Cosmos now has over 4,000 followers from around the world. Thanks to all of you for visiting my site and caring about my musings about Life, the Universe and everything. Second, I have not posted 264 posts over the last few years since I started this blog late in 2019.
Jul 2, 2022Korean Summer Haiku by jake cosmos aller. General Poetry posted July 2, 2022. jake cosmos aller. Retired US Diplomat (State Department) living in South Korea. Served 27 years in 10 countries. Traveled to 55 countries, all 50 states. Grew up in Berkeley, California. Married, no children.
May 20, 2022jake cosmos aller Retired US Diplomat (State Department) living in South Korea. Served 27 years in 10 countries. Traveled to 55 countries, all 50 states. Grew up in Berkeley, California. Married, no children. A published poet, and short story writer. Finished six nove – more…
Jul 20, 2022by jake cosmos aller. Corners of the world. In 1979-1981. Than my own. I learned to speak Korean. In a town that was in the countryside. Of Seoul or the nearby city of Chuncheon. And foreign agricultural workers as well. Than when I lived there over 43 years ago.
Yeongjongdo Redevelopment Proposals ” Yeongjongdo redevelopment proposals bike rail trail in Yeongjongdo The Korean government has ambitious plans for developing Youngjongdo where I live. Here are my… Jake Cosmos Aller — Yeongjongdo Redevelopment Proposals. 1.5M ratings 277k ratings See, that’s what the app is perfect for. …
Jul 17, 2022Food Imperalism by jake cosmos aller. Biographical Fiction posted July 17, 2022. Retired US Diplomat (State Department) living in South Korea. Served 27 years in 10 countries. Traveled to 55 countries, all 50 states. Grew up in Berkeley, California. Married, no children.
Venice in Korea WHERE TO LISTEN to the World According to Cosmos breaker audio Google podcasts radio public Spotify Korea Radio public c: on PocketCasts: Visit to Gangwha Ginseng Market We…
Jun 3, 2021I have reached three milestones. the World According to Cosmos now has over 4,000 followers from around the world. Thanks to all of you for visiting my site and caring about my musings about Life, the Universe and everything. Second, I have not posted 264 posts over the last few years since I started this blog late in 2019.
Jun 8, 2021Update: Korean River/Stream Bed Parks ARA Canal Incheon Updated letter to NPS and updated photos for Cheongjecheon streambed park. Letter to National Parks Director, Minister of Tourism, and KT One of the little-known gems of Korean tourism is all the great river parks and stream bed parks throughout Korea.
Venice in Korea WHERE TO LISTEN to the World According to Cosmos breaker audio Google podcasts radio public Spotify Korea Radio public c: on PocketCasts: Visit to Gangwha Ginseng Market We…
The Korean government has acknowledged these strong ties by hosting several reunions over the years. Last month, about 80 returned Volunteers and family members traveled to Seoul, South Korea, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps arrival in the country. We were there to attend the opening of an exhibit on the Peace Corps at the …
Peace Corps opened its program in Korea in 1966, and more than 2,000 Peace Corps volunteers served there before operations closed in 1981. Since 2008, the Republic of Korea has recognized the service of Peace Corps/Korea volunteers by hosting return trips for many former volunteers so they can again visit the country. Peace Corps and KOICA …
Peace Corps/Korea brought over 2,000 Americans to serve in Korea’s classrooms, farms, and industry. From 1966-1981, the assistance provided by these Volunteers, at a critical period in Korean history, helped to cement U.S.Korea ties. Kevin O’Donnell, the first country director of Peace Corps/Korea, and fourth director of the Peace Corps will …
Peace Corps Volunteers serve in over 60 countries. Find your place in the world. … South Korea 1966-1981 2,060 Volunteers Served Caribbean. The Dominican Republic. 1962-present 13 Volunteers …
It was, as the Peace Corps ad says, “The toughest job you will ever love.” When I left Korea in the mid-70s I was certain I would never see it again. As the years passed, the recollections of my life in Korea crystallized into increasingly romanticized memories. They became nearer and dearer to me in my life’s side-view mirror.
About Friends of Korea. Friends of Korea was founded in 2002 by former Peace Corps volunteers who served in the Republic of Korea between 1966 and 1981. Since Peace Corps ended its program in Korea in 1981, the challenge for Friends of Korea has been to find a mission. Over the past several years we have been engaged in a series of …
Oct 21, 2020Oct 21 2020. 1. by James Mayer (Korea 1978-81) The Korea Times. Friends of Korea. Peace Corps volunteers and others hold a walk-a-thon to raise funds for heart surgery in 1981. / Courtesy of Nancy Kelly. No one likes to be last. But I had that distinction as the Peace Corps Korea country director, and I am forever grateful that it happened.
Connect With the Peace Corps. The Peace Corps. We are inspired by hands-on, grassroots-driven, and lasting impact. Learn more about our mission. In a changing world, building a better future together. New Opportunities Now Available. Dozens of new Volunteering openings are live on our site.
Peace Corps Volunteers and the Making of Korean Studies in the United States. Edited by Seung-Kyung Kim and Michael Robinson. Center for Korea Studies, University of Washington. Reviewed by Steven Boyd Saum . The Peace Corps sent more than 2,000 Volunteers to South Korea 1966-81, to teach English and advise on healthcare.
Mention you’re with the Korea Peace Corps Reunion. Dan Strickland (K-18; danstrickland2001@yahoo.com) is our reunion point person and is available to answer questions or make suggestions. Let us know you’re coming by sending Dan an email with your name(s), your Korean name, K-group #, and check-in/out dates.
🗳️ Congressional Representative for Medford, Oregon
Rep. Cliff Bentz (OR-2)
District Office:
14 N Central Ave., Suite 112
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 776-4646
Washington, D.C. Office:
409 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: (202) 225-6730
Website
🏛️ U.S. Senators from Oregon
Sen. Jeff Merkley
Medford Office:
10 South Bartlett Street, Suite 201
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 608-9102
Washington, D.C. Office:
531 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-3753
Website
Sen. Ron Wyden
Medford Office:
310 West 6th St., Room 118
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 858-5122
Washington, D.C. Office:
221 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-5244
Website
🌐 Director of the Peace Corps
Carol Spahn
Peace Corps Headquarters:
1275 First Street NE
Washington, DC 20526
Phone: (855) 855-1961
Director’s Bio
Peace Corps Contact Page
Rep. Cliff Bentz (OR-2)
District Office:
14 N Central Ave., Suite 112
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 776-4646
Washington, D.C. Office:
409 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: (202) 225-6730
Website
🏛️ U.S. Senators from Oregon
Sen. Jeff Merkley
Medford Office:
10 South Bartlett Street, Suite 201
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 608-9102
Washington, D.C. Office:
531 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-3753
Website
Sen. Ron Wyden
Medford Office:
310 West 6th St., Room 118
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 858-5122
Washington, D.C. Office:
221 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-5244
Website
🌐 Director of the Peace Corps
Carol Spahn
Peace Corps Headquarters:
1275 First Street NE
Washington, DC 20526
Phone: (855) 855-1961
Dear Cliff Bentz
Rep. Cliff Bentz (OR-2)
District Office:
14 N Central Ave., Suite 112
Medford, OR 97501
I am writing as a proud Returned Peace Corps Volunteer who served in Gapyeong, South Korea from 1979 to 1981, working in a rural health center as a tuberculosis control worker. My time in the Peace Corps shaped not only my worldview but also the trajectory of my life. It led me to pursue a Master’s degree in Korean Studies and ultimately serve 27 years in the U.S. Foreign Service before retiring in 2016.
Today, I spend part of the year in South Korea, maintaining the personal and professional ties that were forged through public service and people-to-people diplomacy. I can attest firsthand to the long-lasting goodwill, cultural understanding, and strategic partnerships that Peace Corps volunteers generate. The Peace Corps is not simply a volunteer program—it is a cornerstone of American soft power and one of the most effective tools of diplomacy we’ve ever known.
I urge you, in the strongest terms, to oppose any efforts to dismantle, defund, or diminish the Peace Corps. As geopolitical tensions rise, especially in Asia, it is more crucial than ever to maintain programs that build bridges, not walls.
Please support robust funding for the Peace Corps, protect its independence, and preserve its legacy. The future of diplomacy begins in villages, classrooms, and clinics—not just embassies.
The Korean government has acknowledged these strong ties by hosting several reunions over the years. Last month, about 80 returned Volunteers and family members traveled to Seoul, South Korea, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps arrival in the country. We were there to attend the opening of an exhibit on the Peace Corps at the …
Peace Corps opened its program in Korea in 1966, and more than 2,000 Peace Corps volunteers served there before operations closed in 1981. Since 2008, the Republic of Korea has recognized the service of Peace Corps/Korea volunteers by hosting return trips for many former volunteers so they can again visit the country. Peace Corps and KOICA …
Peace Corps/Korea brought over 2,000 Americans to serve in Korea’s classrooms, farms, and industry. From 1966-1981, the assistance provided by these Volunteers, at a critical period in Korean history, helped to cement U.S.Korea ties. Kevin O’Donnell, the first country director of Peace Corps/Korea, and fourth director of the Peace Corps will …
Peace Corps Volunteers serve in over 60 countries. Find your place in the world. … South Korea 1966-1981 2,060 Volunteers Served Caribbean. The Dominican Republic. 1962-present 13 Volunteers …
It was, as the Peace Corps ad says, “The toughest job you will ever love.” When I left Korea in the mid-70s I was certain I would never see it again. As the years passed, the recollections of my life in Korea crystallized into increasingly romanticized memories. They became nearer and dearer to me in my life’s side-view mirror.
About Friends of Korea. Friends of Korea was founded in 2002 by former Peace Corps volunteers who served in the Republic of Korea between 1966 and 1981. Since Peace Corps ended its program in Korea in 1981, the challenge for Friends of Korea has been to find a mission. Over the past several years we have been engaged in a series of …
Oct 21, 2020Oct 21 2020. 1. by James Mayer (Korea 1978-81) The Korea Times. Friends of Korea. Peace Corps volunteers and others hold a walk-a-thon to raise funds for heart surgery in 1981. / Courtesy of Nancy Kelly. No one likes to be last. But I had that distinction as the Peace Corps Korea country director, and I am forever grateful that it happened.
Connect With the Peace Corps. The Peace Corps. We are inspired by hands-on, grassroots-driven, and lasting impact. Learn more about our mission. In a changing world, building a better future together. New Opportunities Now Available. Dozens of new Volunteering openings are live on our site.
Peace Corps Volunteers and the Making of Korean Studies in the United States. Edited by Seung-Kyung Kim and Michael Robinson. Center for Korea Studies, University of Washington. Reviewed by Steven Boyd Saum . The Peace Corps sent more than 2,000 Volunteers to South Korea 1966-81, to teach English and advise on healthcare.
Mention you’re with the Korea Peace Corps Reunion. Dan Strickland (K-18; danstrickland2001@yahoo.com) is our reunion point person and is available to answer questions or make suggestions. Let us know you’re coming by sending Dan an email with your name(s), your Korean name, K-group #, and check-in/out dates.
Here’s the latest on the future of the Peace Corps as of mid-2025, including perspectives from across the political spectrum and a list of countries where volunteers are currently serving.
🌍 Current Status of the Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is facing significant restructuring and budget cuts under the Trump administration. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has recommended deep staff reductions—up to 80% at headquarters and 25% globally—which could shutter some country programs. While the agency insists it will remain operational, many volunteers and applicants are anxious about its viability.
🗞️ Left-Leaning Analysis
The Hill: Reports that the cuts could “cripple” the Peace Corps and undermine decades of goodwill and soft diplomacy. Critics argue this is part of a broader dismantling of America’s international development efforts.
Peace Corps Connect: The National Peace Corps Association warns that reduced staffing and federal hiring freezes threaten volunteer support and training. They’re urging Congress to restore funding and protect the agency’s mission.
Peace Corps Worldwide: Advocates propose transforming the Peace Corps into an NGO or merging it with AmeriCorps to preserve its legacy and adapt to modern global challenges.
📰 Right-Leaning or Neutral Analysis
EconoTimes: Highlights Trump’s plan to expand and modernize the Peace Corps with a $2 billion budget, focusing on strategic regions like Southeast Asia and Eastern Europe. The goal is to align volunteer efforts with U.S. foreign policy interests.
Next Gen Business: Notes that while some see the cuts as fiscally responsible, others worry they will weaken U.S. influence abroad. The restructuring is framed as part of a broader government streamlining effort.
The Independent: Covers the DOGE-led downsizing and staff buyouts, noting that some posts may close and that the agency’s soft power role is at risk.
📍 Countries Where Peace Corps Volunteers Are Currently Serving
According to the Peace Corps official site, volunteers are actively serving in over 60 countries. Here are some with open opportunities:
Europe: Albania, Armenia, Georgia, Kosovo, Moldova, North Macedonia, Ukraine
Pacific Islands: Palau, Tonga, Vanuatu
Latin America & Caribbean: Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guyana, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Dominica
Some programs have been paused or closed recently, including those in Mozambique, Ethiopia, Cameroon, Kyrgyz Republic, and South Africa.
This is a shout-out to all the Americans who answered the call to serve in the Peace Corps. As some of you know I served in Gapyeong, Korea from 1979 to 1981 working as a tuberculous control worker in a rural health center. Serving in the Peace Corps changed my life in so many ways. It led to a life-long fascination with South Korea, including becoming reasonably fluent in the language, meeting and marrying my wife whom I met after my service ended, and a MA degree in Korean studies from the University of Washington in 1986. It also led me to join the Foreign Service and serve in the Embassy from 1991 to 1993 and serving on the Korea desk from 1994 to 1996.
Before joining the State Department I taught ESL for the US Army, for the Korean Consolidated Administration school, and later at Kyunghee University for three years and Government and Asian Studies for the University of Maryland in Korea.
Title:The Last Volunteer: Dispatches from the Disbanded Peace Corps
Tone: Satirical, reflective, dystopian Style: Blog-style narrative with historical and personal interjections
Structure:
Title:The Last Volunteer: Dispatches from the Disbanded Peace Corps
In 1980, I served in the Peace Corps working in a public health center as a tuberculous control worker in Gapyeong, a small town in the mountains two hours from Seoul. I shared kimchi recipes with elders, learned the art of bowing without bruising my pride, and discovered that diplomacy often begins with a shared meal.
We were told we were ambassadors of peace.
Now, apparently, we were just wasting taxpayer money.
Chapter 2: The Decree
It came on a Tuesday. Trump stood at a golden podium flanked by ICE agents and a bald eagle wearing aviators.
“The Peace Corps is hereby disbanded,” he declared. “We don’t need volunteers spreading peace. We need patriots sealing borders.”
The budget was rescinded. Volunteers were ordered home. The Peace Corps website redirected to a recruitment page for ICE.
Chapter 3: The Fallout
Returned volunteers were stripped of their federal hiring preference. One was reportedly escorted out of a USDA interview for wearing a tie-dye shirt and quoting Mandela.
Peace Corps offices were converted into detention intake centers. The slogan “Life is calling” was replaced with “Compliance is mandatory.”
My old training center in Korea? Rumor has it it’s now a drone calibration site.
Chapter 4: The Broader Purge
The Presidential Management Fellows program was canceled next. “We don’t need managers,” Trump said. “We need enforcers.”
The State Department announced it would no longer publish annual human rights reports. “We prefer vibes-based diplomacy,” said the new Undersecretary for Global Branding.
The U.S. withdrew from the International Labour Organization. All ILO conventions were declared null and void. Labor rights, it seems, were too socialist.
Chapter 5: Toronto Rising
Late-night comics were fired. Journalists silenced. And somewhere in the chaos, Toronto became the new capital of dissent.
Former Peace Corps volunteers, comedians, and exiled diplomats now broadcast nightly from a converted Tim Hortons.
Their motto: Still serving—just not sanctioned.
Chapter 6: The Last Volunteer
I served in Korea from 1979 to 1981. We believed in bridges, not walls. We believed that service could change the world.
I still do.
Even if the bridge now leads north to Toronto.
Author’s Note:
This piece is satire. But the memories are real. And so is the fear that idealism is being erased, one program at a time.
If you served, if you dreamed, if you still believe—keep writing. Keep resisting.
Peace isn’t dead. It’s just been defunded.
Along the way, Korea changed so much and is not the country I first learned to love back in 1979. Here are a few of my poetic reflections, followed by additional information on the Peace Corps and my letters to my Congressmen and Senators and the Peace Corps director expressing my frustration over the possibility that the Peace Corps could soon join USAID on the chopping block. I will post any responses I might receive.
Korean Poems
author at a Korean temple 1980?
Korea travels
I first came to Korea in 1979
in the Peace Corps
Stayed in the rural countryside
in the town of Gapeyong
where I worked
in a rural health care center
Where I was one of four non-Koreans
Had to speak Korean to survive
Stayed on in a variety of jobs
Including diplomatic service
I last lived there in 1993.
Non-Korean food was hard to get
Outside of the GI ghettos
English speakers were few
And the country was not foreign-friendly
There were few foreign residents
Most American service members
Some missionary types
Diplomatic corps
A few English teachers
A few ex-pat business people
Most women quit after marriage
As it was a male-dominated society
In the rural countryside
No one knew a woman’s name
They were referred
to as so and so “mom”
Or so and so wife,
Or the generic aunt,
or grandmother
Public transit was just getting going
But traffic was not too bad
Few people could afford cars
Back then the old Korea was still there
And it was a very different place and time
Going through the transition
to the country, it has become
Today’s Korea is a very different place
The rural countryside is deserted
Wilderness areas are coming back
Even wildlife is coming back
In the mountain outback regions
50 percent of the public
Live in the Seoul metro area
Including Kyeongi province
And Incheon city where I reside.
Public transit is among the best
In the world.
Internet fast and cheap
Everywhere connected
Highways are decent but overcrowded
The KTX train is fast and convenient
The Incheon airport one of the best
The choices for food are much better
Used to be it was almost impossible
To find non-Korean food
Outside the GI ghetto towns.
Now it is everywhere
Even saw a Mexican restaurant
In a suburban Busan neighborhood.
In the end
Koreans should be proud
Of all that they have accomplished.
I remain optimistic
That someday the two Koreans
Will become one again
And that they will continue
To advance and grow
But the essence of Korea will remain
Waiting for Korean Springtime
poet Hill Korea
The world peace forest
Stretches five miles
Through a delightful forest
Including a nice lotus pound
A winter watering hole for birds
And a small mountain
I welcome the advent of spring
The cherry trees snowing
The Tulips and roses blooming
After a cold sometimes hard winter
Especially during the COVID pandemic
Which kept so many people
Trapped indoors
As I walk the path
With the love of my life
By my side
Enjoying another springtime
Filled with love and affection
That is why I love Korean springtime.
19 lines
Pastoral free verse
Life in a Korean village
I am living in a Korean village as an exchange student. One day my host family asks me to go to the local health center to tell them to change the father’s medicine, and give me a note, the old medicine, and instructions. I am a little apprehensive, but they told me that was fine since the dragon who controlled the village had approved the request already. I smiled I had met the dragon who seemed to like me which made things in the village go much better. The daughter is cute.
The Peace Corps changed my life
Not in the obvious ways
That it did
I learned a new language
A new culture
Met many different people
Did some constructive development work
And contributed to friendship
Between Koreans and the US
All the usual things that Peace Corps
Is supposed to accomplish
But the Peace Corps changed me
And I became the man I am now
Because of those two years
I spend in the countryside
Of South Korea
I went to graduate school
I became a diplomat
But most importantly
If I had not gone to the Korean peace corps program
I never would have met the girl of my dreams
The women I was fated to meet
I first met Angela in 1974
When I was in high school
And fell asleep in a class
And had the dream that haunted me
To this day
In the dream
I met a beautiful Asian women
Who was speaking to me
In a weird language
And then she disappeared
Like in Star Trek
And I fell on the floor
“Screaming
You are you?”
I continued to have these visions
Every month for seven years
I eventually learned
that she was in Korea
And so I joined the Peace Corps
to go to Korea
To find her
After I finished Peace Corps
I stuck around for another year
Thinking I would find her
But never did
Just when I was
due to return to the US
To go to Graduate school
I had the final dream
In this dream
She said in Korean
“Don’t worry
you will meet me soon.”
That night getting off the bus
In front of me
Was the girl in the dream
I looked at her
And I knew she was it
And she looked at me
And knew I was it
We met up for coffee
And we dated
I proposed to her
three days after I met her
And then we married
Two months later
Despite her family’s attempts
To keep us apart
And we have been
married 43 years
And I fall in love with her
Over and over again
And I still have the dream
When I am alone
Or when I am stressed out
I see her standing by the bed
Smiling at me
Saying
Everything will be alright
And it is
and so thinking back on my life
My life changed forever
When I left the US
To join the Peace Corps
Long Live the Peace Corps
this is a true story of the love of my life. I met her in 1982 when I was teaching in Korea after having finished my Peace Corps service in 1981. We got married two months after we met and have been married 33 years. I still recall the dreams of how I would met her from time to time.
I always thought this would make a great love story movie., perhaps a K Drama?
About 30 years ago,
American-style coffee chains
Discovered Korea.
After the 88 Olympics,
Koreans discovered the joy
Of real brewed coffee,
Hot, Sweet, Neat
The rest is history.
hot humid weather in Korea,
outside like walking in a sauna.
Most people don’t use air conditioning
due to both expenses,
fear of air conditioning disease
(Which is a real thing).
hanging out at a coffee shop or mall
discouraged as COVID continues to spread.
Only two people can dine out at night
over 2, 00 cases a day now
only 20 percent are fully vaccinated.
temperatures will hit 40 degrees (100 + f)
later this week
as the monsoon season ends
and the August heat begins.
Koreans are learning
new words to describe this
heat dome
tropical nights
Polar vortex
Monster typhoons
Killing floods
Killing heat waves
are now common.
used to be that July and August
were hot and humid
but rarely about 100 dF.
Now that is becoming the norm,
as global climate change
begins hitting Korea hard.
the winters are colder
but much shorter.
Late January to early February
Polar Vortex swept through
the summer is longer
starting in May
and lasting until mid-September.
Autumn is lasting
from Mid-September
to Mid-December.
Spring just late April to early June
So far no killer wildfires.
As the monsoon season
Came on time
Monson flooding
Just before the killer heatwaves
the prompt was to write about the local weather Korea is experiencing a heat dome highs in the 90’s (40 C) real feel close to 100 F, with tropical nights in the 80s F. No relief in sight until late august, the second hottest summer in Korea so far but it will probably break the record heat
When Sam Adams
first met her
The lady of his dreams
There was as the Koreans
Would say
Spark from heart to heart
이심촌심
isimchonsim
truly love at first sight
첫눈에 반하다
cheosnun-e banhada
they both knew
that it is just fate
운명
unyoung
that they had met
that date.
Two months later
They were married
It all happened
40 years ago
48 years after
She first came
To him in his dreams.
the prompt was to incorporate foreign words into a poem I chose Korean which is my best foreign language as I have been struggling to learn it for 43 years
May 18, 2021Venice in Korea “Venice in Korea and other Korean Stream Bed Parks ARA Canal Incheon Over the last decade, Korea has build hundreds of stream bed parks throughout Seoul and Korea. There are great… Jake Cosmos Aller — Venice in Korea. 1.5M ratings 277k ratings See, that’s what the app is perfect for. Sounds perfect Wahhhh, I don’t …
Jun 3, 2021I have reached three milestones. the World According to Cosmos now has over 4,000 followers from around the world. Thanks to all of you for visiting my site and caring about my musings about Life, the Universe and everything. Second, I have not posted 264 posts over the last few years since I started this blog late in 2019.
Jul 2, 2022Korean Summer Haiku by jake cosmos aller. General Poetry posted July 2, 2022. jake cosmos aller. Retired US Diplomat (State Department) living in South Korea. Served 27 years in 10 countries. Traveled to 55 countries, all 50 states. Grew up in Berkeley, California. Married, no children.
May 20, 2022jake cosmos aller Retired US Diplomat (State Department) living in South Korea. Served 27 years in 10 countries. Traveled to 55 countries, all 50 states. Grew up in Berkeley, California. Married, no children. A published poet, and short story writer. Finished six nove – more…
Jul 20, 2022by jake cosmos aller. Corners of the world. In 1979-1981. Than my own. I learned to speak Korean. In a town that was in the countryside. Of Seoul or the nearby city of Chuncheon. And foreign agricultural workers as well. Than when I lived there over 43 years ago.
Yeongjongdo Redevelopment Proposals ” Yeongjongdo redevelopment proposals bike rail trail in Yeongjongdo The Korean government has ambitious plans for developing Youngjongdo where I live. Here are my… Jake Cosmos Aller — Yeongjongdo Redevelopment Proposals. 1.5M ratings 277k ratings See, that’s what the app is perfect for. …
Jul 17, 2022Food Imperalism by jake cosmos aller. Biographical Fiction posted July 17, 2022. Retired US Diplomat (State Department) living in South Korea. Served 27 years in 10 countries. Traveled to 55 countries, all 50 states. Grew up in Berkeley, California. Married, no children.
Venice in Korea WHERE TO LISTEN to the World According to Cosmos breaker audio Google podcasts radio public Spotify Korea Radio public c: on PocketCasts: Visit to Gangwha Ginseng Market We…
Jun 3, 2021I have reached three milestones. the World According to Cosmos now has over 4,000 followers from around the world. Thanks to all of you for visiting my site and caring about my musings about Life, the Universe and everything. Second, I have not posted 264 posts over the last few years since I started this blog late in 2019.
Jun 8, 2021Update: Korean River/Stream Bed Parks ARA Canal Incheon Updated letter to NPS and updated photos for Cheongjecheon streambed park. Letter to National Parks Director, Minister of Tourism, and KT One of the little-known gems of Korean tourism is all the great river parks and stream bed parks throughout Korea.
Venice in Korea WHERE TO LISTEN to the World According to Cosmos breaker audio Google podcasts radio public Spotify Korea Radio public c: on PocketCasts: Visit to Gangwha Ginseng Market We…
The Korean government has acknowledged these strong ties by hosting several reunions over the years. Last month, about 80 returned Volunteers and family members traveled to Seoul, South Korea, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps arrival in the country. We were there to attend the opening of an exhibit on the Peace Corps at the …
Peace Corps opened its program in Korea in 1966, and more than 2,000 Peace Corps volunteers served there before operations closed in 1981. Since 2008, the Republic of Korea has recognized the service of Peace Corps/Korea volunteers by hosting return trips for many former volunteers so they can again visit the country. Peace Corps and KOICA …
Peace Corps/Korea brought over 2,000 Americans to serve in Korea’s classrooms, farms, and industry. From 1966-1981, the assistance provided by these Volunteers, at a critical period in Korean history, helped to cement U.S.Korea ties. Kevin O’Donnell, the first country director of Peace Corps/Korea, and fourth director of the Peace Corps will …
Peace Corps Volunteers serve in over 60 countries. Find your place in the world. … South Korea 1966-1981 2,060 Volunteers Served Caribbean. The Dominican Republic. 1962-present 13 Volunteers …
It was, as the Peace Corps ad says, “The toughest job you will ever love.” When I left Korea in the mid-70s I was certain I would never see it again. As the years passed, the recollections of my life in Korea crystallized into increasingly romanticized memories. They became nearer and dearer to me in my life’s side-view mirror.
About Friends of Korea. Friends of Korea was founded in 2002 by former Peace Corps volunteers who served in the Republic of Korea between 1966 and 1981. Since Peace Corps ended its program in Korea in 1981, the challenge for Friends of Korea has been to find a mission. Over the past several years we have been engaged in a series of …
Oct 21, 2020Oct 21 2020. 1. by James Mayer (Korea 1978-81) The Korea Times. Friends of Korea. Peace Corps volunteers and others hold a walk-a-thon to raise funds for heart surgery in 1981. / Courtesy of Nancy Kelly. No one likes to be last. But I had that distinction as the Peace Corps Korea country director, and I am forever grateful that it happened.
Connect With the Peace Corps. The Peace Corps. We are inspired by hands-on, grassroots-driven, and lasting impact. Learn more about our mission. In a changing world, building a better future together. New Opportunities Now Available. Dozens of new Volunteering openings are live on our site.
Peace Corps Volunteers and the Making of Korean Studies in the United States. Edited by Seung-Kyung Kim and Michael Robinson. Center for Korea Studies, University of Washington. Reviewed by Steven Boyd Saum . The Peace Corps sent more than 2,000 Volunteers to South Korea 1966-81, to teach English and advise on healthcare.
Mention you’re with the Korea Peace Corps Reunion. Dan Strickland (K-18; danstrickland2001@yahoo.com) is our reunion point person and is available to answer questions or make suggestions. Let us know you’re coming by sending Dan an email with your name(s), your Korean name, K-group #, and check-in/out dates.
🗳️ Congressional Representative for Medford, Oregon
Rep. Cliff Bentz (OR-2)
District Office:
14 N Central Ave., Suite 112
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 776-4646
Washington, D.C. Office:
409 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: (202) 225-6730
Website
🏛️ U.S. Senators from Oregon
Sen. Jeff Merkley
Medford Office:
10 South Bartlett Street, Suite 201
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 608-9102
Washington, D.C. Office:
531 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-3753
Website
Sen. Ron Wyden
Medford Office:
310 West 6th St., Room 118
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 858-5122
Washington, D.C. Office:
221 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-5244
Website
🌐 Director of the Peace Corps
Carol Spahn
Peace Corps Headquarters:
1275 First Street NE
Washington, DC 20526
Phone: (855) 855-1961
Director’s Bio
Peace Corps Contact Page
Rep. Cliff Bentz (OR-2)
District Office:
14 N Central Ave., Suite 112
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 776-4646
Washington, D.C. Office:
409 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: (202) 225-6730
Website
🏛️ U.S. Senators from Oregon
Sen. Jeff Merkley
Medford Office:
10 South Bartlett Street, Suite 201
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 608-9102
Washington, D.C. Office:
531 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-3753
Website
Sen. Ron Wyden
Medford Office:
310 West 6th St., Room 118
Medford, OR 97501
Phone: (541) 858-5122
Washington, D.C. Office:
221 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-5244
Website
🌐 Director of the Peace Corps
Carol Spahn
Peace Corps Headquarters:
1275 First Street NE
Washington, DC 20526
Phone: (855) 855-1961
Dear Cliff Bentz
Rep. Cliff Bentz (OR-2)
District Office:
14 N Central Ave., Suite 112
Medford, OR 97501
I am writing as a proud Returned Peace Corps Volunteer who served in Gapyeong, South Korea from 1979 to 1981, working in a rural health center as a tuberculosis control worker. My time in the Peace Corps shaped not only my worldview but also the trajectory of my life. It led me to pursue a Master’s degree in Korean Studies and ultimately serve 27 years in the U.S. Foreign Service before retiring in 2016.
Today, I spend part of the year in South Korea, maintaining the personal and professional ties that were forged through public service and people-to-people diplomacy. I can attest firsthand to the long-lasting goodwill, cultural understanding, and strategic partnerships that Peace Corps volunteers generate. The Peace Corps is not simply a volunteer program—it is a cornerstone of American soft power and one of the most effective tools of diplomacy we’ve ever known.
I urge you, in the strongest terms, to oppose any efforts to dismantle, defund, or diminish the Peace Corps. As geopolitical tensions rise, especially in Asia, it is more crucial than ever to maintain programs that build bridges, not walls.
Please support robust funding for the Peace Corps, protect its independence, and preserve its legacy. The future of diplomacy begins in villages, classrooms, and clinics—not just embassies.
The Korean government has acknowledged these strong ties by hosting several reunions over the years. Last month, about 80 returned Volunteers and family members traveled to Seoul, South Korea, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps arrival in the country. We were there to attend the opening of an exhibit on the Peace Corps at the …
Peace Corps opened its program in Korea in 1966, and more than 2,000 Peace Corps volunteers served there before operations closed in 1981. Since 2008, the Republic of Korea has recognized the service of Peace Corps/Korea volunteers by hosting return trips for many former volunteers so they can again visit the country. Peace Corps and KOICA …
Peace Corps/Korea brought over 2,000 Americans to serve in Korea’s classrooms, farms, and industry. From 1966-1981, the assistance provided by these Volunteers, at a critical period in Korean history, helped to cement U.S.Korea ties. Kevin O’Donnell, the first country director of Peace Corps/Korea, and fourth director of the Peace Corps will …
Peace Corps Volunteers serve in over 60 countries. Find your place in the world. … South Korea 1966-1981 2,060 Volunteers Served Caribbean. The Dominican Republic. 1962-present 13 Volunteers …
It was, as the Peace Corps ad says, “The toughest job you will ever love.” When I left Korea in the mid-70s I was certain I would never see it again. As the years passed, the recollections of my life in Korea crystallized into increasingly romanticized memories. They became nearer and dearer to me in my life’s side-view mirror.
About Friends of Korea. Friends of Korea was founded in 2002 by former Peace Corps volunteers who served in the Republic of Korea between 1966 and 1981. Since Peace Corps ended its program in Korea in 1981, the challenge for Friends of Korea has been to find a mission. Over the past several years we have been engaged in a series of …
Oct 21, 2020Oct 21 2020. 1. by James Mayer (Korea 1978-81) The Korea Times. Friends of Korea. Peace Corps volunteers and others hold a walk-a-thon to raise funds for heart surgery in 1981. / Courtesy of Nancy Kelly. No one likes to be last. But I had that distinction as the Peace Corps Korea country director, and I am forever grateful that it happened.
Connect With the Peace Corps. The Peace Corps. We are inspired by hands-on, grassroots-driven, and lasting impact. Learn more about our mission. In a changing world, building a better future together. New Opportunities Now Available. Dozens of new Volunteering openings are live on our site.
Peace Corps Volunteers and the Making of Korean Studies in the United States. Edited by Seung-Kyung Kim and Michael Robinson. Center for Korea Studies, University of Washington. Reviewed by Steven Boyd Saum . The Peace Corps sent more than 2,000 Volunteers to South Korea 1966-81, to teach English and advise on healthcare.
Mention you’re with the Korea Peace Corps Reunion. Dan Strickland (K-18; danstrickland2001@yahoo.com) is our reunion point person and is available to answer questions or make suggestions. Let us know you’re coming by sending Dan an email with your name(s), your Korean name, K-group #, and check-in/out dates.
Here’s the latest on the future of the Peace Corps as of mid-2025, including perspectives from across the political spectrum and a list of countries where volunteers are currently serving.
🌍 Current Status of the Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is facing significant restructuring and budget cuts under the Trump administration. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has recommended deep staff reductions—up to 80% at headquarters and 25% globally—which could shutter some country programs. While the agency insists it will remain operational, many volunteers and applicants are anxious about its viability.
🗞️ Left-Leaning Analysis
The Hill: Reports that the cuts could “cripple” the Peace Corps and undermine decades of goodwill and soft diplomacy. Critics argue this is part of a broader dismantling of America’s international development efforts.
Peace Corps Connect: The National Peace Corps Association warns that reduced staffing and federal hiring freezes threaten volunteer support and training. They’re urging Congress to restore funding and protect the agency’s mission.
Peace Corps Worldwide: Advocates propose transforming the Peace Corps into an NGO or merging it with AmeriCorps to preserve its legacy and adapt to modern global challenges.
📰 Right-Leaning or Neutral Analysis
EconoTimes: Highlights Trump’s plan to expand and modernize the Peace Corps with a $2 billion budget, focusing on strategic regions like Southeast Asia and Eastern Europe. The goal is to align volunteer efforts with U.S. foreign policy interests.
Next Gen Business: Notes that while some see the cuts as fiscally responsible, others worry they will weaken U.S. influence abroad. The restructuring is framed as part of a broader government streamlining effort.
The Independent: Covers the DOGE-led downsizing and staff buyouts, noting that some posts may close and that the agency’s soft power role is at risk.
📍 Countries Where Peace Corps Volunteers Are Currently Serving
According to the Peace Corps official site, volunteers are actively serving in over 60 countries. Here are some with open opportunities:
Europe: Albania, Armenia, Georgia, Kosovo, Moldova, North Macedonia, Ukraine
Pacific Islands: Palau, Tonga, Vanuatu
Latin America & Caribbean: Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guyana, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Dominica
Some programs have been paused or closed recently, including those in Mozambique, Ethiopia, Cameroon, Kyrgyz Republic, and South Africa.
I just finished re-reading the classic dystopian novel It Can’t Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis, about the rise to power of a fascist-corporatist dictatorship in the United States. Published in 1935, the It Can’t Happen Here novel emerged during a period of realistic fear that a Nazi-like regime could gain control in America.
Re-reading It Can’t Happen Hereit now—while watching the growing threat of a neo-fascist movement take shape in the U.S.—feels hauntingly prescient. I recall the saying that history does not repeat, but it rhymes and as I read the book, I saw echoes of the 1930s rise to power of the Nazi and Fascists states in Europe and recalled that there was a lot of support for Hitler in the US until the outbreak of war, many prominent figures were pro-Hitler. It could have happened here, which of course is the theme of this great dystopian thriller, It Can’t Happen Here and sadly, many fear that it is happening now. The phrase “America first” was first used in the 1930s by isolationists who did not want to have the US drag into a war in Europe.
Overview
It Can’t Happen Here depicts the ascent of a charming con man, Senator Buzz Windrip, who rallies the masses he calls the “Forgotten People.” Once elected president, Windrip swiftly installs a fascist regime modeled after Hitler’s Germany and Mussolini’s Italy. He creates a police state backed by his private militia, the Minute Men. Dissent is outlawed. Labor camps are built. Jews and Black Americans are rounded up, alongside political prisoners. The media is suppressed, universities are brought under government control, and the states are reorganized into districts governed by military overseers.
Synopsis
It Can’t Happen Here is a dystopian political novel by Sinclair Lewis, published in 1935. It explores the rise of a fascist regime in the United States led by the populist senator Berzelius “Buzz” Windrip, who wins the presidency and quickly dismantles democratic institutions. The story follows Doremus Jessup, a newspaper editor who resists Windrip’s authoritarian rule. He joins an underground movement spreading anti-government propaganda and is eventually imprisoned in a labor camp. Jessup escapes and flees to Canada, later returning to the U.S. to fight in a newly established rebel province. The novel ends with a note of hope, as the fascist regime is finally overthrown by popular revolt.
Lots of food for thought here.
Characters
• Doremus Jessup — A liberal newspaper editor and the protagonist
• Buzz Windrip — A charismatic senator who becomes a dictator
• Shad Ledue — A former handyman who rises through the ranks of Windrip’s regime
• Lorinda Pike — A feminist and outspoken government critic
• Sissy Jessup — Doremus’s rebellious daughter
• Lee Sarason — Windrip’s manipulative advisor
• Julian Falck — A young student and Sissy’s love interest
• Mary Greenhill — Doremus’s daughter, who joins the resistance
Notable Quotes
• “Every man is a king so long as he has someone to look down on.”
• “He loved the people just as much as he feared and detested persons.”
• “It isn’t what you earn but how you spend it that fixes your class.”
• “So much in a revolution is nothing but waiting.”
• “A country that tolerates evil means—evil manners, standards of ethics—for a generation, will be so poisoned that it never will have any good end.”
Other Works by Sinclair Lewis
• Main Street (1920)
• Babbitt (1922)
• Arrowsmith (1925)
•Elmer Gantry (1927)
• Dodsworth (1929)
• Ann Vickers (1933)
• The Prodigal Parents (1938)
• Gideon Planish (1943)
• Kingsblood Royal (1947)
Books with Similar Themes
• The Plot Against America by Philip Roth •On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder
• They Thought They Were Free: The Germans 1933–45 by Milton Mayer
• 1984 by George Orwell
• *Jack London The Iron Heel
I had a lot to say on this topic but decided to limit myself to the following five poems, as
I don’t want to end up in a camp after all.
Alligator Alcatraz Opens
Our President
went to the Everglades
To celebrate the opening
Of Alligator Alcatraz—
A detention center
On a semi-abandoned airfield
Just outside Miami.
Surrounded by swamps
Filled with gators,
pythons, and panthers,
The inmates will be held
Pending deportation.
No phones.
No internet.
No friends, family, or lawyers.
Just trailers
In 100-degree heat.
Hell on Earth.
Concentration Camps in the U.S.?
ICE is building “detention” camps—
A.K.A. concentration camps—
Across the land.
They’re deporting millions
Of undocumented people.
Snatching them off the street,
Off buses,
After immigration hearings.
Raiding workplaces,
Farms,
Schools,
Churches,
Flea markets.
Alligator Alcatraz
is only the latest.
Hundreds more
Yet to be built.
In the deserts of the Southwest,
Swamplands of the Southeast,
Or maybe Alaska—
America’s Siberia.
Being undocumented
Is now a crime.
And if you protest,
You’ll be charged
With assaulting
“heroic” ICE agents.
You’ll be tazed,
Thrown in an unmarked van,
And disappear.
Even if you’re a U.S. citizen,
If you’re naturalized,
You’ll be denaturalized.
Why?
Because they can.
That’s why.
My Name Is Classified
“My name?
Classified.
Who I work with?
Classified.
Where am I taking you?
Classified.
Need-to-know basis—
And you don’t
need to know.
No phone calls.
No visits.
No lawyers.
“You want to be arrested too?
For obstruction of justice?”
Show me your papers.
Hmm… could be fake.”
Then they rip up your ID,
Claiming you had none.
Now you’re clearly illegal.
And you disappear—
Into the expanding gulag.
Or get deported
To a foreign prison.
Welcome to America—
Land of the Free.
Home of the Brave.
See you in the camps
For the crime
Of writing these poems.
Freedom Camps Coming Everywhere
Alligator Alcatraz.
President tours new prison.
Vows to crack down
On protests
Against his crusade
To rid America
Of the “illegal alien invasion.”
Everyone without proper documentation
Will be arrested—
Doesn’t matter how long you’ve lived here,
Or if you’re married to a U.S. citizen.
Foreign visitors
Will be monitored
To prevent protests
Of any kind.
The banned country list
Will grow to 100.
Diplomatic recognition?
Revoked.
Any country that warns citizens
About traveling to the U.S.—
Punished.
Beautiful detention centers
Will be built
Everywhere.
He calls them
Freedom Centers.
If you call them concentration camps—
You’ll be arrested
For defamation.
Then sent to the Freedom Centers
To work
Until deported
Or your case settles.
One monitored call per week.
No legal representation
Unless you’re a U.S. citizen.
Limited visits.
Locations and conditions—
Classified.
Publishing info?
Go to jail.
Congress members
Who try to visit?
Arrested.
See you in the camps
For the crime
Of writing these poems
Co-pilot provide useful background information on the Pro-Hitler movement in the US
You’re absolutely right—the 1930s in the U.S. saw a disturbing level of sympathy for Hitler and fascist ideology, though it never coalesced into a full-blown regime. Let’s unpack both the support and the reasons it didn’t take hold.
🇺🇸 Pro-Nazi Sentiment in 1930s America
Several factors contributed to the rise of Nazi sympathy:
German-American Bund: This was the most visible pro-Nazi group, led by Fritz Kuhn. They held massive rallies—including one at Madison Square Garden in 1939 attended by over 20,000 people—with swastikas and portraits of George Washington.
Isolationism: Many Americans, still reeling from WWI, wanted to stay out of European conflicts. Groups like America First promoted non-intervention, and some members admired Hitler’s anti-communist stance.
Anti-Semitism and Racism: These sentiments were widespread and often aligned with Nazi ideology. Figures like Father Charles Coughlin, a radio priest, spread anti-Semitic propaganda to millions.
Economic Despair: The Great Depression created fertile ground for extremist ideas. Hitler’s apparent success in revitalizing Germany’s economy appealed to some Americans.
📚 Why a Nazi-like Regime Didn’t Take Hold
Sinclair Lewis’s It Can’t Happen Here (1935) imagined a fascist takeover led by a populist demagogue named Buzz Windrip. The fears were real—but several factors prevented that dystopia:
Strong Democratic Institutions: Despite flaws, the U.S. had a resilient Constitution, independent judiciary, and a free press that resisted authoritarian consolidation.
Political Moderation: Mainstream parties, especially the Democrats under FDR, absorbed populist energy through the New Deal, undercutting extremist appeal.
Lack of Unified Leadership: Unlike Germany’s centralized Nazi Party, American fascist groups were fragmented and often at odds with each other.
Public Resistance: Massive counter-protests, especially by Jewish groups, veterans, and labor unions, pushed back against fascist rallies and propaganda.
Timing and Luck: Figures like Charles Lindbergh had the charisma and following to lead a fascist movement, but never ran for office. Huey Long, a populist governor seen as a potential American dictator, was assassinated in 1935—just before Lewis finished his novel.
🧠 Legacy and Lessons
Lewis’s novel remains eerily relevant. It reminds us that democracy isn’t self-sustaining—it requires vigilance. The 1930s showed how close the U.S. came to authoritarianism, and how fragile the line between populism and fascism can be.
🧠 Themes That Echo in Today’s Politics
Sinclair Lewis’s novel explores how democracy can erode from within, not through foreign invasion but through charismatic populism, fear-mongering, and institutional decay. Sound familiar?
Authoritarianism Wrapped in Patriotism: Buzz Windrip’s rise mirrors modern leaders who use nationalism and “traditional values” to justify crackdowns on dissent, media, and minorities.
Media Manipulation: Windrip’s regime controls information through radio propaganda. Today, disinformation spreads via social media algorithms, echo chambers, and partisan news.
Economic Desperation as Fertile Ground: The Great Depression made Americans vulnerable to Windrip’s promises. Today, economic inequality and precarity fuel similar populist appeals.
The Cult of Personality: Windrip’s followers overlook his lies and incompetence because he “speaks their language.” This parallels how some modern political figures maintain loyalty despite scandals or failures.
Resistance and Moral Courage: Doremus Jessup’s transformation from passive observer to underground activist reminds us that silence enables tyranny, and resistance often begins with ordinary people.
📚 Comparison to Other Dystopian Works
Novel
Author
Key Themes
Comparison to It Can’t Happen Here
1984
George Orwell
Surveillance, censorship, totalitarian control
Orwell’s regime is overtly oppressive; Lewis’s is insidiously American
Brave New World
Aldous Huxley
Pleasure as control, loss of individuality
Huxley’s dystopia sedates; Lewis’s manipulates through fear and nationalism
The Plot Against America
Philip Roth
Alternate history, fascism in the U.S.
Roth imagines Lindbergh as president; Lewis uses Windrip as a stand-in for Huey Long and others
Parable of the Sower
Octavia Butler
Collapse of society, survival, faith
Butler’s world is post-collapse; Lewis warns of collapse from within
Lewis’s novel is unique in that it’s not speculative sci-fi—it’s political realism with a dystopian twist. It doesn’t imagine a distant future; it imagines next year.
🔍 Why It Didn’t Happen Then—But Could Now
In the 1930s, fascist sympathies existed in the U.S., but:
Institutions like the press and courts held firm.
FDR’s New Deal absorbed populist energy.
Fascist groups lacked unity and leadership.
Figures like Huey Long were cut short (he was assassinated in 1935).
Today, those guardrails feel shakier. The novel’s relevance lies in its reminder that democracy is not self-sustaining—it requires vigilance, accountability, and moral clarity.
Reflections on returning to the US and recent poems
I have returned to the US for the summer. I will be in DC then Oregon a,nd California. So far I have mixed feelings. The political madness is there, but otherwise things are looking good.
entry was a breeze. The facial recognition AI powered software blinked and I was in. Just like that. It is nice when technology works. Some people have had problems entering the US as DHS agents never known for being customer friendly have bother and detained some foreign visitors but we had no problems.
The Trump-Musk bromace ended in a spectacular blow-up with both sides blaming each other.
Trump is going to get his big military parade next week.
I went out to Annadale the other night and had a delicious dinner at Taco Sam a K-Mexican restaurant. K-Mexican food is a fusion of Korean and Mexican food. It originated in Korea town LA which has a lot of Mexicans as well as Koreans. Koreans and Mexicans discovered that they liked each other food and there were a number of Korean-Mexican couples. Over time some people open K Mexican restaurants. The one in Annandale is typical. We had bulgogi and chicken fajitas. Quite good actually.
It looks as if I will be returning to DC area next summer and residing there for a few years. I am looking forward to that and hope we can continue to live in Korea part of the year.
Here then are some of my reflections and recent poems to enjoy.
Return to the US blog Sam Adam’s Decision Fight Fascism
Sam Adams
Watching the news unfold
Seeing daily the beginning
Of the fascist take-over
Of the United States,
He had a dilemma
and decision to make,
Did he allow it
to happen quietly
Of did he join
the resistance and rebellion?
Lost and Found
When we met
My dear,
I was lost
And you found me.
You mesmerized me with your love.
You saved my benighted soul
And gave me love and comfort,
In a refuge in a cold uncaring world.
I am reading “it Can’t Happen Here” which is prophetic novel written in 1934 about the rise to power of a fascist dictatorship. Very timeley reading.
It Can’t Happen Here is a dystopian political novel by Sinclair Lewis, published in 1935. It explores the rise of a fascist regime in the United States, led by the populist senator Berzelius “Buzz” Windrip, who wins the presidency and quickly dismantles democratic institutions. The story follows Doremus Jessup, a newspaper editor who resists Windrip’s authoritarian rule.
Characters:
Doremus Jessup – A liberal newspaper editor and the protagonist.
Buzz Windrip – A charismatic senator who becomes a dictator.
Shad Ledue – A former handyman who rises in the ranks of Windrip’s regime.
Lorinda Pike – A feminist and outspoken critic of the government.
Sissy Jessup – Doremus’s rebellious daughter.
Lee Sarasin – Windrip’s manipulative advisor.
Julian Falck – A young student and Sissy’s love interest.
Mary Greenhill – Doremus’s daughter, who joins the resistance.
Notable Quotes:
“Every man is a king so long as he has someone to look down on.”
“He loved the people just as much as he feared and detested persons.”
“It isn’t what you earn but how you spend it that fixes your class.”
“So much in a revolution is nothing but waiting.”
“A country that tolerates evil means—evil manners, standards of ethics—for a generation, will be so poisoned that it never will have any good end.”
Other Works by Sinclair Lewis:
Main Street (1920)
Babbitt (1922)
Arrowsmith (1925)
Elmer Gantry (1927)
Dodsworth (1929)
Ann Vickers (1933)
The Prodigal Parents (1938)
Gideon Planish (1943)
Kings blood Royal (1947)
Books with Similar Themes:
The Plot Against America by Philip Roth
On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder
They Thought They Were Free: The Germans 1933-45 by Milton Mayer
1984 by George Orwell
The Iron Heel by Jack London
Fascism: A Warning by Madeleine Albright
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
Stay Positive
15 line version
With all the gloom and doom
Nonstop 24/7 BREAKING NEWS
Bad, crazy, deceitful, dismal, evil,
Fake, fraudulent, wild news
Flooding our TV screens.
Like Frank Zappa’s famous
“Slime oozing out of your TV sets”
It is very hard to remain positive.
Hard to see the good news.
Senator Manchin reached a deal
To deal with climate change
Inflation and energy security.
He took the deal
He had denounced
A few weeks before.
President Trump Doubles Down on his Crusade Against Top Universities
He declares that the top universities in the US have become a disgrace and should be shutdown as hotbeds of radical, left win fanatic down starting with Harvard and in his opinion there are too many damn universities in the US and too many foreign students, declaring that the temporary ban on foreign students will continue and become a reduction of total foreign students. He said that if Harvard and the other top universities were to shut down that would be a great thing. He called for a revolution in higher education promoting patriotic pro-American values, American history, patriotism, ending DEI programs, gender studies, ethnic studies and other left wing programs, anti-white programs, anti-American programs and working closely with industry to ensure that graduates are prepared for the world of work. He called for a boycott of the top universities declaring that the Federal government will no longer hire Harvard graduates and other graduates of elite universities and hire instead graduates from conservative universities who are committed to the MAGA world view.
trump
Trump Doubles Down Vows to Arrest Anyone Who Stands in the Way of his Mass Deportation Drive
Millions of people begin marching across the country wearing the new uniform of the resistance a TACO hat which stands for Trump Always Chickens Out. The president goes berserk ordering the mass arrest and detention of any people who wears taco hats or otherwise disrespect the President and the Government.
In a sign of mass protests every democratic member of congress show up wearing TACO uniforms and refuse to back down Speaker Jeffries makes an impassioned speech denouncing King Donald and calls for mass civil disobedience and announces that the entire democratic caucus will walk out in protests and calls upon his Republican colleagues to join them in protest.
The Republicans in congress split and one quarter joins the Democratic party in the mass walkout and protest action as millions of people gather in front of the White House wearing TACO uniforms and demanding that he arrest the entire country.
Donald Trump is Not Amused
Donald Is not amused
At the latest news
At the growing protests
At the constant mockery
TACO man goes viral
As Trump Always Chickens Out
Becomes a killer meme
Taking the world by storm
TACO Goes Viral
The joke meme
“Trump
Always
Chickens
Out”
TACO Man
Takes the world
By Storm
Ten Cheritas
There is nothing more to be said
Nothing more I can add
Nothing more than this
I will love you
Until the end of time itself
and death does us part
——————————————————————————————
—————————————————————————————-
There is always one more time
There is always a second chance
For love and happiness
In this dark world of ours
We will find each other
Til the end of time itself
——————————————————————————————–
Time waits for no one
That is what they say
That time waits for no one
But that is a lie
Time waits for you
And time waits for me too
——————————————————————————————————-
I will Love you until the end of time
That is all I need to say
That is all that there is
Nothing but love in my heart
Waiting for me to say it
And for you to believe it
———————————————————————————————–
In the beginning of the world
I saw you there
Walking off that bus
And that was the beginning
Of my life with you
And the end of the rest of the world
—————————————————————————————————–
Love Endures
the longer I live
the more I learn
that nothing endures in life
other than the love
I share with you
—————————————————————————————————
The Future of NYC
In the distant future
the world will end
with a massive flood
and NYC will slowly sink
beneath the waves
and mankind will die
——————————————————————————————-
69 Years Young
I am 62 years young
62 years around the sun
37 of those years
I have spent
with the love of my life
————————————————————–
Married the Girl of my Dreams
I married the girl of my Dreams
first dreamt of her
back in 1974
Eight years later
she walked off a bus
and into my life
As submitted without Titles
There is nothing more to be said
Nothing more I can add
Nothing more than this
I will love you
Until the end of time itself
and death does us part
——————————————————-
The Cicada Invasion
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
the Cicada invasion
has begun
in Northern Virginia
billions of them
flying about
making an out-of-this world
alien Sci-Fi like racket
loud enough to wake
the dead from their slumbers
looking for a mate
to keep the species alive
as soon as they mate
they die
what a fate
they have
The Grim Reaper Gathers His Posse
It was Halloween night
A night that all the denizens
Of hell loved.
For on that night
All of hell would break out.
They would celebrate their annual escape
On Halloween, they are allowed
To go to the surface sunlit lands.
For a night of drinking,
Drugging and wilding
As bad craziness descends
Upon the land.
The Grim Reaper and his posse
Dressed up as cosmic court jesters
Dressed as fools.
They descended upon the world
And a night of chaos fell upon the land.
Thousands died, as the Grim Reaper
Added to his quota.
Bonus kills were bonus points.
He returned to hell with his minions,
And the souls of the dead
Who soon became mere ghosts.
Their voices crying in the wind
Echoing through time.
grimm reaper
Joe Lewis Meets the Grim Reaper
Joe Lewis died one day after drinking too much in Soi Cowboy, Bangkok, Thailand. He found himself in a dark, forbidding jungle, hot and humid, with a foul smell of death and decaying vegetation everywhere. He had a sense that there were creatures in the jungles looking at him with evil, hungry, malicious intent, then he saw them as the moonlight lit the jungle forest.
Drop acid, Smoke weed, drink vodka shots, scotch, bourbon, beer.
The Trumpian Pig leads the charge and starts engaging in sodomy with Putin
Who chases after people, cutting off their heads with his sword, they turn on to their fellow creatures raping and killing each other, and eating their fellow creatures all night long, howling and growling like escaped banshees from Hell’s insane asylums. Then they attack me screaming,
“Jews will not replace us”
The Putin-Trump pigman yelled out, “After him. All humans must die. Kill Sam.
”
Even the trees came alive, trying to trip him up, as the nightmare creatures ran after him, the hunters, and soldiers firing flaming arrows and semi-automatic weapons lighting up the night sky, and the birds dive-bombing him trying to get his eyes and face, and the other creatures getting closer and closer screaming at him.
They were gaining on him when he came to a dark foul-smelling river. There was a ferryboat filled with hundreds of evil, depraved people on board floating down the river. Many of them were infamous figures, including anti-vaxxer crusaders, bar owners, celebrities, corrupt politicians of both American parties, including Governors, Representatives, Senators, drug dealers, members of the British parliament and parliaments around the world, criminals, crooked cops, fake news reporters, gangsters, gangbangers, gangsta rappers, internet bloggers, idiots in both high and low places, “Criminal Lawyers ” media darlings, pharma bros, scumbags, scoundrels, wall street executives, thugs, Italian, Korean, Japanese Yakuza, and Vietnamese Mafia figures.
They were all standing around as if they were at a cocktail party of the newly damned, drinking, smoking dope, snorting coke, and meth, dropping acid, and flirting up a storm, enjoying the free food, drinks, and drugs provided by the” Hell Catering “company using robots and demonic slave labor. They were partying as if it were their last day on earth, and they knew where they were going. Many of them felt that they would somehow manage to thrive in Hell and were looking forward to it. None of them felt remorse or regret for the actions they had taken in their life. They were mostly entitled “rich people,” the self-proclaimed “masters of the universe.
Just as the creatures were about to pounce, he swam into the water, the boat stopped, and two strange-looking men pulled him out of the water. The human monsters on the ship looked at Joe and dismissed him as a loser, a refugee fleeing the monstrous welcoming committee, and not worthy of their time.
The two gentlemen who had pulled him out of the water were strange-looking people, rough-edged but better than the party people who continued to ignore him or made mocking references to the refugee. Charon, the conductor, an elderly Italian man dressed in a black suit, stood in front of the boat. The Grim Reaper, dressed in a dark suit wearing ray beans, looking oh so cool, stood next to him. The Grim Reaper had a pan-ethnic look, could be almost any ethnicity in the world, but also looked like a space alien.
When he came aboard the ferryboat, he asked the two strange gentlemen who had rescued him,
“Thanks for saving me. Where am I?”
Handing Joe, a cup of Hell whiskey, the older of the two introduced himself saying, “I am the Grim Reaper, and this is Charon, and you are on the ferry to Hell. You are floating down the river Styx, heading to Hell and beyond. We saved you from the welcoming committee. Normally they kill our visitors and take their dead bodies to Hell where they receive a bounty, and then you are reborn as a zombie slave, possessed by demons, becoming a ghost, or a ghoul, or are sent to Hell for punishment. But sometimes, virtuous people manage to escape and per our SOP we are obligated to take in the refugees and take them to Limbo for processing. Stay here my friend, because if you go to the party, you may never return to earth.”
We are taking you and Mr. Alvarez to Limbo for further processing. He may be going upstairs but being an attorney, I have my doubts. You know what they say about lawyers in heaven, there are almost none and Hell is filled with lawyers, crooked police officers, and mafia figures. Limbo is filled with bureaucrats and the red tape takes forever, and the computer system is always crashing. What can you expect? Well, it is hard to get tech support in Heaven or Limbo, all the tech folks tend to go to Hell. “
Mr. Alvarez was an elderly Italian attorney, a lifelong fighter against corruption, the mafia, and organized criminals, and a famous human rights attorney based in Rome.
They chatted about his life and Joe’s life. Mr. Alvarez said, “My friend GR said that I might be the only lawyer getting into heaven in a long time. Most lawyers end up in the other place.”
The river was black as it was after midnight. There was a stench of decay and death, fire and brimstone, and fires burning in giant pits in the distance. The welcoming committee of nightmare creatures followed the boat shouting obscenities and jumping in the water to retrieve partiers who fell off the boat, taking them to shore where they tortured them, murdered them, and ate them.
The other people walked off to the basement of 666 5th Avenue, where there was one of many secret back doorways to the world above Hell. Demon functionaries dressed in Matrix Mr. Smith-style black suits met them at the ferry terminal. They disappeared into the depths of hell. A punk rock band played punk anthems.
The Grim Reaper took Joe and Antonio to the next step, Limbo. A giant black building reached the sky, filled with demonic bureaucrats dressed in Matrix-like Mr. Smith black suits.
The Grim Reaper said, “Wait here. It should not be too long; I like you so we will put you in front of the line.”
He saw hundreds of lost souls wandering around. There were signs in multiple languages saying.
“Wait your turn. You will be processed in the order received. No drinking, drugs, food, phone use, or sexual activity allowed. And no sleeping either. It should not be too long.”
Just then a demon functionary came up to him, hissing. “Joe, and Antonio, follow me.” And took him to where the Grim Reaper was waiting.
“Joe, Antonio, glad to see you. Please tip the demon.”
Joe paid him 100 dollars and Antonio 100 euros. The demon demanded more. The Grim Reaper swore at him in Demon speak and he disappeared into the crowd.
The Grim Reaper consulted his handheld computer, saying, “Hmm just as I suspected. You are wanted upstairs, and a guardian angel was watching you. But you almost did not make it in time. The computer program has a glitch, and you are being sent back to Earth. Your time for final status determination will be sooner than you think. I hope you and I can be friends. I can hire people as my assistants. We had a lot of fun. Think about it when you come back.”
Joseph Lewis woke up in bed next to his wife, he got up and turned on his computer, and read the following message,
“Mr. Joe, I hoped you enjoyed your tour last night. But unfortunately, there was a computer glitch in the matrix system that controls limbo, heaven, and hell. It is hard to get tech support in Limbo or Heaven, most of the engineers end up in hell. But in any event, we determined it was not yet your time.
Your friend made it fine and sends his regards. The drinks are on him when you and your wife finally make it. Oh, contrary to the old song, “In Heaven, there is no beer” we have the finest beer, wine, and spirits you can find in Heaven, and Hell as well.
As for the others, you saw, they too will visit the ferry for the last journey within a few years for most of them. But you know where they will end up.”
Wraiths,Yesterdays,yellow jackets, Yeti, and zombies.
Intending to unleash chaos
Leaving their prisons
Deep inside the mind
The wild things
Have come out to run amok
In the light of the full moon
Nightmarish foul creatures
Great demons, werewolves, goblins,
Monsters, hell hounds
Escaped banshees
Straight out of Hell
Howling at the lunatic light
Of the full moon.
To escape
From their prisons
Deep in the mind
Of the sleeping man.
The wild things
Sniff the air
Saying it was time
For some wilding
The wild things
Jump out the window
And run amuck
Spreading chaos in their wake.
Killing everyone they see
Raping women
Vandalizing buildings
Yelling screaming
As the wild things
Run amuck
Led by a half man half horse
Centaur-like creature
With a Putin Like the mask
And the voice of Donald Trump
The wild things run amuck
All over the town
Spreading chaos
Until the dawning sun
Turns them back
Into vampire-like creatures
And werewolves
Howling at the full moon
The wild things
Come back
And enter their prison
Deep in the sleeper’s head
And the wild things
Fade into a nightmarish image
As the sleeping man
Awakes to recall the dream
And the night of terror
When the wild things
Came out to play
At o dark hundred.
Blame Games
Politicians
Love to play
The blame game
It is always
The other fellows fault
Never the politician’s
They all play
The blame game
None better than
The President
Who is always right
Reflections on returning to the US and recent poems
I have returned to the US for the summer. I will be in DC then Oregon and California. So far I have mixed feelings. The political madness is there but otherwise things are looking good.
The Trump-Musk bromace ended in a spectacular blow up with both sides blaming each other.
Trump is going to get his big military parade next week.
I went out to Annadale the other night and had a delicious dinner at Taco Sam a K-Mexican restaurant. K-Mexican food is a fusion of Korean and Mexican food. It originated in Korea town LA which has a lot of Mexicans as well as Koreans. Koreans and Mexicans discovered that they liked each other food and there were a number of Korean-Mexican couples. Over time some people open K Mexican resturants. The one in Annandale is typical. We had bulgogi and chicken fajitas. Quite good actually.
It looks as if I will be returning to DC area next summer and residing there for a few years. I am looking forward to that and hope we can continue to live in Korea part of the year.
Here then are some of my reflections and recent poems to enjoy.
Return to the US blog Sam Adam’s Decision Fight Fascism
Sam Adams
Watching the news unfold
Seeing daily the beginning
Of the fascist take-over
Of the United States,
I had a dilemma and decision to make,
Did he allow it to happen quietly
Of did he join the resistance and rebellion?
Lost and Found
When we met
My dear,
I was lost
And you found me.
You mesmerized me with your love.
You saved my benighted soul
And gave me love and comfort,
In a refuge in a cold uncaring world.
It Can’t Happen Here is a dystopian political novel by Sinclair Lewis, published in 1935. It explores the rise of a fascist regime in the United States, led by the populist senator Berzelius “Buzz” Windrip, who wins the presidency and quickly dismantles democratic institutions. The story follows Doremus Jessup, a newspaper editor who resists Windrip’s authoritarian rule.
Characters:
Doremus Jessup – A liberal newspaper editor and the protagonist.
Buzz Windrip – A charismatic senator who becomes a dictator.
Shad Ledue – A former handyman who rises in the ranks of Windrip’s regime.
Lorinda Pike – A feminist and outspoken critic of the government.
Sissy Jessup – Doremus’s rebellious daughter.
Lee Sarasin – Windrip’s manipulative advisor.
Julian Falck – A young student and Sissy’s love interest.
Mary Greenhill – Doremus’s daughter, who joins the resistance.
Notable Quotes:
“Every man is a king so long as he has someone to look down on.”
“He loved the people just as much as he feared and detested persons.”
“It isn’t what you earn but how you spend it that fixes your class.”
“So much in a revolution is nothing but waiting.”
“A country that tolerates evil means—evil manners, standards of ethics—for a generation, will be so poisoned that it never will have any good end.”
Other Works by Sinclair Lewis:
Main Street (1920)
Babbitt (1922)
Arrowsmith (1925)
Elmer Gantry (1927)
Dodsworth (1929)
Ann Vickers (1933)
The Prodigal Parents (1938)
Gideon Planish (1943)
Kings blood Royal (1947)
Books with Similar Themes:
The Plot Against America by Philip Roth
On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder
They Thought They Were Free: The Germans 1933-45 by Milton Mayer
1984 by George Orwell
The Iron Heel by Jack London
Fascism: A Warning by Madeleine Albright
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
Stay Positive
15 line version
With all the gloom and doom
Nonstop 24/7 BREAKING NEWS
Bad, crazy, deceitful, dismal, evil,
Fake, fraudulent, wild news
Flooding our TV screens.
Like Frank Zappa’s famous
“Slime oozing out of your TV sets”
It is very hard to remain positive.
Hard to see the good news.
Senator Manchin reached a deal
To deal with climate change
Inflation and energy security.
He took the deal
He had denounced
A few weeks before.
President Trump doubles down on his crusade against top universities
He declares that the top universities in the US have become a disgrace and should be shutdown as hotbeds of radical, left win fanatic down starting with Harvard and in his opinion there are too many damn universities in the US and too many foreign students, declaring that the temporary ban on foreign students will continue and become a reduction of total foreign students. He said that if Harvard and the other top universities were to shut down that would be a great thing. He called for a revolution in higher education promoting patriotic pro-American values, American history, patriotism, ending DEI programs, gender studies, ethnic studies and other left wing programs, anti-white programs, anti-American programs and working closely with industry to ensure that graduates are prepared for the world of work. He called for a boycott of the top universities declaring that the Federal government will no longer hire Harvard graduates and other graduates of elite universities and hire instead graduates from conservative universities who are committed to the MAGA world view.
Trump Doubles Down vows to arrest anyone who stands in the way of his mass deportation drive
Millions of people begin marching across the country wearing the new uniform of the resistance a TACO hat which stands for Trump Always Chickens Out. The president goes berserk ordering the mass arrest and detention of any people who wears taco hats or otherwise disrespect the President and the Government.
In a sign of mass protests every democratic member of congress show up wearing TACO uniforms and refuse to back down Speaker Jeffries makes an impassioned speech denouncing King Donald and calls for mass civil disobedience and announces that the entire democratic caucus will walk out in protests and calls upon his Republican colleagues to join them in protest.
The Republicans in congress split and one quarter joins the Democratic party in the mass walkout and protest action as millions of people gather in front of the White House wearing TACO uniforms and demanding that he arrest the entire country.
Donald Is not amused
At the latest news
At the growing protests
At the constant mockery
TACO man goes viral
As Trump Always Chickens Out
Becomes a killer meme
Taking the world by storm
TACO Goes Viral
The joke meme
“Trump
Always
Chickens
Out”
TACO Man
Takes the world
By Storm
Ten Cheritas
There is nothing more to be said
There is always one more time
Time waits for no one
I will Love you until the end of time
That is all I need to say
In the beginning of the world
Life Endures
The Future of NYC
69 Years Young
Married the Girl of My Dreams
Ten Haiku
There is nothing more to be said
There is always one more time
Time waits for no one
I will Love you until the end of time
That is all I need to say
In the beginning of the world
Life Endures
The Future of NYC
69 Years Young
Married the Girl of My Dreams
Ten Tanka
There is nothing more to be said
There is always one more time
Time waits for no one
I will Love you until the end of time
That is all I need to say
In the beginning of the world
Life Endures
The Future of NYC
69 Years Young
Married the Girl of My Dreams
Without titles as submitted
There is nothing more to be said
Nothing more I can add
Nothing more than this
I will love you
Until the end of time itself
and death does us part
—————————————————————————————-
There is always one more time
There is always a second chance
For love and happiness
In this dark world of ours
We will find each other
Til the end of time itself
——————————————————————————————–
Time waits for no one
That is what they say
That time waits for no one
But that is a lie
Time waits for you
And time waits for me too
——————————————————————————————————-
I will Love you until the end of time
That is all I need to say
That is all that there is
Nothing but love in my heart
Waiting for me to say it
And for you to believe it
———————————————————————————————–
In the beginning of the world
I saw you there
Walking off that bus
And that was the beginning
Of my life with you
And the end of the rest of the world
—————————————————————————————————–
Love Endures
the longer I live
the more I learn
that nothing endures in life
other than the love
I share with you
—————————————————————————————————
The Future of NYC
In the distant future
the world will end
with a massive flood
and NYC will slowly sink
beneath the waves
and mankind will die
——————————————————————————————-
69 Years Young
I am 62 years young
62 years around the sun
37 of those years
I have spent
with the love of my life
————————————————————–
Married the Girl of my Dreams
I married the girl of my Dreams
first dreamt of her
back in 1974
Eight years later
she walked off a bus
and into my life
As submitted without Titles
There is nothing more to be said
Nothing more I can add
Nothing more than this
I will love you
Until the end of time itself
and death does us part
——————————————————-
There is always one more time
There is always a second chance
For love and happiness
In this dark world of ours
We will find each other
Til the end of time itself
—————————————————————-
Time waits for no one
That is what they say
That time waits for no one
But that is a lie
Time waits for you
And time waits for me too
——————————————————————
I will Love you until the end of time
That is all I need to say
That is all that there is
Nothing but love in my heart
Waiting for me to say it
And for you to believe it
——————————————————————–
In the beginning of the world
I saw you there
Walking off that bus
And that was the beginning
Of my life with you
And the end of the rest of the world
————————————————————–
Love Endures
the longer I live
the more I learn
that nothing endures in life
other than the love
I share with you
—————————————————————
The Future of NYC
In the distant future
the world will end
with a massive flood
and NYC will slowly sink
beneath the waves
and mankind will die
————————————————————–
I am 69 Years Young
69 years around the sun
Still alive and kicking
42 of those years
I have spent
with the love of my life
———————————————————————
I married the girl of my Dreams
first dreamt of her
back in 1974
Eight years later
she walked off a bus
and into my life
—————————————————————
the Cicada invasion
the Cicada invasion
has begun
in Northern Virginia
billions of them
flying about
making an out-of-this world
alien Sci-Fi like racket
loud enough to wake
the dead from their slumbers
looking for a mate
to keep the species alive
as soon as they mate
they die
what a fate
they have
The Grim Reaper Gathers His Posse
It was Halloween night
A night that all the denizens
Of hell loved.
For on that night
All of hell would break out.
They would celebrate their annual escape
On Halloween, they are allowed
To go to the surface sunlit lands.
For a night of drinking,
Drugging and wilding
As bad craziness descends
Upon the land.
The Grim Reaper and his posse
Dressed up as cosmic court jesters
Dressed as fools.
They descended upon the world
And a night of chaos fell upon the land.
Thousands died, as the Grim Reaper
Added to his quota.
Bonus kills were bonus points.
He returned to hell with his minions,
And the souls of the dead
Who soon became mere ghosts.
Their voices crying in the wind
Echoing through time.
Sam Adams died one day after drinking too much in Soi Cowboy, Bangkok, Thailand. He found himself in a dark, forbidding jungle, hot and humid, with a foul smell of death and decaying vegetation everywhere. He had a sense that there were creatures in the jungles looking at him with evil, hungry, malicious intent, then he saw them as the moonlight lit the jungle forest.
Drop acid, Smoke weed, drink vodka shots, scotch, bourbon, beer.
The Trumpian Pig leads the charge and starts engaging in sodomy with Putin
Who chases after people, cutting off their heads with his sword, they turn on to their fellow creatures raping and killing each other, and eating their fellow creatures all night long, howling and growling like escaped banshees from Hell’s insane asylums. Then they attack me screaming,
“Jews will not replace us”
The Putin-Trump pigman yelled out, “After him. All humans must die. Kill Sam.
.”
Even the trees came alive, trying to trip him up, as the nightmare creatures ran after him, the hunters, and soldiers firing flaming arrows and semi-automatic weapons lighting up the night sky, and the birds dive-bombing him trying to get his eyes and face, and the other creatures getting closer and closer screaming at him.
They were gaining on him when he came to a dark foul-smelling river. There was a ferryboat filled with hundreds of evil, depraved people on board floating down the river. Many of them were infamous figures, including anti-vaxxer crusaders, bar owners, celebrities, corrupt politicians of both American parties, including Governors, Representatives, Senators, drug dealers, members of the British parliament and parliaments around the world, criminals, crooked cops, fake news reporters, gangsters, gangbangers, gangsta rappers, internet bloggers, idiots in both high and low places, “Criminal Lawyers ” media darlings, pharma bros, scumbags, scoundrels, wall street executives, thugs, Italian, Korean, Japanese Yakuza, and Vietnamese Mafia figures.
They were all standing around as if they were at a cocktail party of the newly damned, drinking, smoking dope, snorting coke, and meth, dropping acid, and flirting up a storm, enjoying the free food, drinks, and drugs provided by the” Hell Catering “company using robots and demonic slave labor. They were partying as if it were their last day on earth, and they knew where they were going. Many of them felt that they would somehow manage to thrive in Hell and were looking forward to it. None of them felt remorse or regret for the actions they had taken in their life. They were mostly entitled “rich people,” the self-proclaimed “masters of the universe.
Just as the creatures were about to pounce, he swam into the water, the boat stopped, and two strange-looking men pulled him out of the water. The human monsters on the ship looked at Joe and dismissed him as a loser, a refugee fleeing the monstrous welcoming committee, and not worthy of their time.
The two gentlemen who had pulled him out of the water were strange-looking people, rough-edged but better than the party people who continued to ignore him or made mocking references to the refugee. Charon, the conductor, an elderly Italian man dressed in a black suit, stood in front of the boat. The Grim Reaper, dressed in a dark suit wearing ray beans, looking oh so cool, stood next to him. The Grim Reaper had a pan-ethnic look, could be almost any ethnicity in the world, but also looked like a space alien.
When he came aboard the ferryboat, he asked the two strange gentlemen who had rescued him,
“Thanks for saving me. Where am I?”
Handing Joe, a cup of Hell whiskey, the older of the two introduced himself saying, “I am the Grim Reaper, and this is Charon, and you are on the ferry to Hell. You are floating down the river Styx, heading to Hell and beyond. We saved you from the welcoming committee. Normally they kill our visitors and take their dead bodies to Hell where they receive a bounty, and then you are reborn as a zombie slave, possessed by demons, becoming a ghost, or a ghoul, or are sent to Hell for punishment. But sometimes, virtuous people manage to escape and per our SOP we are obligated to take in the refugees and take them to Limbo for processing. Stay here my friend, because if you go to the party, you may never return to earth.”
We are taking you and Mr. Alvarez to Limbo for further processing. He may be going upstairs but being an attorney, I have my doubts. You know what they say about lawyers in heaven, there are almost none and Hell is filled with lawyers, crooked police officers, and mafia figures. Limbo is filled with bureaucrats and the red tape takes forever, and the computer system is always crashing. What can you expect? Well, it is hard to get tech support in Heaven or Limbo, all the tech folks tend to go to Hell. “
Mr. Alvarez was an elderly Italian attorney, a lifelong fighter against corruption, the mafia, and organized criminals, and a famous human rights attorney based in Rome.
They chatted about his life and Joe’s life. Mr. Alvarez said, “My friend GR said that I might be the only lawyer getting into heaven in a long time. Most lawyers end up in the other place.”
The river was black as it was after midnight. There was a stench of decay and death, fire and brimstone, and fires burning in giant pits in the distance. The welcoming committee of nightmare creatures followed the boat shouting obscenities and jumping in the water to retrieve partiers who fell off the boat, taking them to shore where they tortured them, murdered them, and ate them.
The other people walked off to the basement of 666 5th Avenue, where there was one of many secret back doorways to the world above Hell. Demon functionaries dressed in Matrix Mr. Smith-style black suits met them at the ferry terminal. They disappeared into the depths of hell. A punk rock band played punk anthems.
The Grim Reaper took Joe and Antonio to the next step, Limbo. A giant black building reached the sky, filled with demonic bureaucrats dressed in Matrix-like Mr. Smith black suits.
The Grim Reaper said, “Wait here. It should not be too long; I like you so we will put you in front of the line.”
He saw hundreds of lost souls wandering around. There were signs in multiple languages saying.
“Wait your turn. You will be processed in the order received. No drinking, drugs, food, phone use, or sexual activity allowed. And no sleeping either. It should not be too long.”
Just then a demon functionary came up to him, hissing. “Joe, and Antonio, follow me.” And took him to where the Grim Reaper was waiting.
“Joe, Antonio, glad to see you. Please tip the demon.”
Joe paid him 100 dollars and Antonio 100 euros. The demon demanded more. The Grim Reaper swore at him in Demon speak and he disappeared into the crowd.
The Grim Reaper consulted his handheld computer, saying, “Hmm just as I suspected. You are wanted upstairs, and a guardian angel was watching you. But you almost did not make it in time. The computer program has a glitch, and you are being sent back to Earth. Your time for final status determination will be sooner than you think. I hope you and I can be friends. I can hire people as my assistants. We had a lot of fun. Think about it when you come back.”
Joseph Lewis woke up in bed next to his wife, he got up and turned on his computer, and read the following message,
“Mr. Joe, I hoped you enjoyed your tour last night. But unfortunately, there was a computer glitch in the matrix system that controls limbo, heaven, and hell. It is hard to get tech support in Limbo or Heaven, most of the engineers end up in hell. But in any event, we determined it was not yet your time.
Your friend made it fine and sends his regards. The drinks are on him when you and your wife finally make it. Oh, contrary to the old song, “In Heaven, there is no beer” we have the finest beer, wine, and spirits you can find in Heaven, and Hell as well.
As for the others, you saw, they too will visit the ferry for the last journey within a few years for most of them. But you know where they will end up.”
Your friend.
Mr. GR the Grim Reaper.
Sailing to Hell
After a long night drinking
In the Cosmos Bar
Sam Adams
Woke up
And found himself
On a barge
Filled with hundreds
Of strange looking people.
The barge was being driven
By a large black man
With dreadlocks.
Along with oars men
Pulling the boat
Along a dark river.
The landscape swept by
Hellish nightmare on land
Fires burning everywhere.
The smell of fire
And brimstone ever present
Screams of the condemned
Filling the air.
The heat and stench
Made it
Hard to breath.
Sam asked the captain
“Where the hell am I?”
The captain laughed,
“I am Charon
And you are on your way
To Limbo.
For your judgement
Day is nigh.
Be afraid my friend
Be very afraid.
Abandon all hope
For those
who find themselves here.
Here never return
To the sunlit lands
Of their birth.”
And he handed Sam
A glass of hell brew ale,
One of his fellow prisoners
A big burly fellow
Who had a pan-ethnic look
Could be anything.
Grabbed the ale
And threw it
into the stinking river,
and said,
Once you drink hell ale
You can not return
To your homeworld.
You have but one chance left
Convince the powers that be
To give you another chance
To return to the world
Right the wrongs you made
Atone for your mistakes.
And hope
The computer
made a mistake
As they often do.
Hell is filled
with corrupt systems techs
And they can be bought.
I have been here before
Let me be your guide
Sam Adams of Earth.
And they sailed on
In the sturgeon darkness
Where it is always
O dark hundred.
TACO Pivoting Trump
TACO Pivoting Writer’s Digest
TACO Pivoting
President Trump
is known nowadays
by acronym
TACO
Which stands for
Trump
Always
Chickens
Out
A nickname he hates
With passion
He got the nickname
because
Of his constant pivoting
Away from his previous positions.
As he adjusts
and changes
His policies
on a whim.
My Computer Hates Me Computer
My Computer Hates Me Writer’s Digest
My Computer Hates Me
Sometimes it seems
That my computer
My laptop hates me.
As it is constantly
Doing things
To frustrate me.
It crashes without warning
It loses data all the time
It often post cryptic
Haiku like error messages.
“General Failure
Reading disk drive”
Who is this General Failure
And why is he reading
My disk drive anyway?
But my computer’s
favorite trick
Is to without warning
When I am trying
to copy and paste
it copies the previous text
making me repeat the operation
several times
and sometimes
it copies and replaces
the entire document
without warning.
and disabling
the save feature
just to fuck with me
some more.
Yes it seems
my computer
Hates me.
Who Is Master?
Posted on all poetry
In the beginning of that fateful day
I awoke with a painful way
And looked about me with disgust
All around me were objects to distrust
Screaming, meaning, deeming, dreaming
Who was master here
Me or my objects – machinery of fear?
I dreamt I was on a street corner
Walking down a street
The thought occurred to me
What if all that I saw or seemed to be
Was but a trick designed to deceive me?
Everywhere I looked
Was unreal, empirical, nightmarish real
I awoke to thunderous applause
When will I awake from my dreams
Can I live without my nightmares?
Can I be sane while everyone else is insane?
Who is master of my life,
Me or my machines?
Wild Things Run Amuck
4 am
O dark Hundred
Bewitching hour
Time for wild things,
To come out to play
Intending to unleash chaos
Leaving their prisons
Deep inside the mind
The wild things
Have come out to run amok
In the light of the full moon
Nightmarish foul creatures
Great demons, werewolves, goblins,
Monsters, hell hounds
Escaped banshees
Straight out of Hell
Howling at the lunatic light
Of the full moon.
To escape
From their prisons
Deep in the mind
Of the sleeping man.
The wild things
Sniff the air
Saying it was time
For some wilding
The wild things
Jump out the window
And run amuck
Spreading chaos in their wake.
Killing everyone they see
Raping women
Vandalizing buildings
Yelling screaming
As the wild things
Run amuck
Led by a half man half horse
Centaur-like creature
With a Putin Like the mask
And the voice of Donald Trump
The wild things run amuck
All over the town
Spreading chaos
Until the dawning sun
Turns them back
Into vampire-like creatures
And werewolves
Howling at the full moon
The wild things
Come back
And enter their prison
Deep in the sleeper’s head
And the wild things
Fade into a nightmarish image
As the sleeping man
Awakes to recall the dream
And the night of terror
When the wild things
Came out to play
At o dark hundred.
Blame Games
Politicians
Love to play
The blame game
It is always
The other fellows fault
Never the politician’s
They all play
The blame game
None better than
The President
Who is always right
My computer hates me Writer’s Digest
My computer hates me
It is plotting against me
Trying to drive me mad
As it constantly
fucks with my head
My computer hates me
It constantly plays games
Can’t open files
Can’t find the printer
My computer hates me
It crashes all the time
Displaying haiku error messages
My computer hates me
My computer is an evil mofo
My computer hates me
You are everything
You are everything
You are my happiness
You are my love drug.
My love connection.
Ever since
I first saw you
In my dreams.
You messermized me
With your love
Turning me
Into your love pabo (fool).
As your love mojo
Worked overtime
Casting a spell on me.
And ever since
From that moment
Looking at you.
Made me
the happiest man
In the whole universe.
Summer in DC Flash
summer in DC
hot humid tropical days
madness on TV
Trump V Musk Failed Bromace
Trump
War against
Elon Musk first Buddy
No longer bromace, over
Musk
War
MAGA civil war erupts
Both are disloyal
They proclaim
Hate
MAGA is President Trump’s movement Make America Great Again
Musk and Trump Paku
Musk and Trump
fight
no longer friends
Trump, Musk La Pensa
Trump, Musk
Co-presidents
Bromace now over for good
It was bound to happen someday
Ending in warfare
Elon Musk was called the first buddy in charge of taming the Federal government bureaucracy through his DOGE Department of Government Efficiency which has caused tremendous damage to the Federal government, until the epic break-up recently both sides blaming the other for being disloyal and both sides threatening dire consequences, Trump saying he fired Musk, Musk saying that Trump owes him without his money Trump would have lost. Who will win?
Musk is arrested by DEA and ordered deported by DHS. On grounds that he overstayed his visa and worked illegally 30 years ago. The DEA shows off the illegal drugs found at his house.
Trump is forced to back down on tariffs with China, The EU and chickens out as the nation’s CEO and Chamber of Commerce declare that the Trump Recession ends. The damage is severe, and it takes months to restore some degree of sanity. The end result was that countries around the world agreed to pay 5 percent tariffs and US exporters would also pay 5 percent. In the end it was months of total chaos ending with a humbling backing down.
It Can’t Happen Here remade becomes a huge Hit
Trump Declares Martial Law as protests across the country reach a peak after his military parade causes huge outrage
Steven Miller embraces elements of It Can’t Happen here – calling for the proud boys to assist in the deportation of illegal aliens.
And shutting down Congress, and remaking State boundaries to eliminate once and for all Blue State’s independence.
Civil War 2.0 is launched with California leads the West Coast out of the US and joins forces with British Colombia, and joins Hawaii, Alaska, New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado in a new West Coast Federation
The East Coast Federation joins in forming a new Federation including DC!
Michigan, Chicago and Ontario form Chicagoland.
Trump Doubles Down Calls for an end of the elite universities starting with Harvard
declaring that the elite universities are now run by anti-American, Anti-Christian, radical leftwing marxists consumed with DEI, CRT, gender ideologies and other fascist leftwing nonsense. They must be reformed, the faculty cleansed and most foreign students sent home. They must get rid of ethnic studies, women studies, queer studies, and anti-American history programs. They must teach patriotic history instead. The Department of Education will have a new mission – to purge academia of all such divisive anti-American, cultural Marxism and other ideologies. The President of Harvard must resign immediately and must apologize to the nation and promise to reform. All foreign students and faculty must be fired, and only patriotic Americans allowed to teach or work at Harvard.
If they refuse to comply then the nation should respond by boycotting Harvard and the other elite colleges. The Department of Education will rate all universities in the country and publish the results in two weeks. Those deemed to be unpatriotic will lose the right to enroll foreign students, and hire foreign faculty and staff, and receive no federal grants or contracts, and also their students will receive no student loans. Universities will have until August 15 to comply or face the consequences.
President Trump Goes On A Rampage Calling For A Crack Down On Home Depot
This includes ordering ICE shock troops out to conduct “Operation Home Depot”. Home Deport announces that they would stand aside and let the raids occur but promises to provide legal assistance to anyone who is detained illegally while working at or shopping at Home Depot. Trump responds by calling for a boycott of Home Depot charging them with being informal sanctuary for illegal aliens providing a safe space for them to find employment.
We are shopping at Home Depot in Alexandria when the raids are announced. The goon squads stop Angela and start hazing her. I stand up for her telling the agent
“Hey dude, back off. She is a retired US army major and I am a retired US Foreign Service office so show us some fucking respect bro”
They threaten to arrest both of us for resisting arrest and I laugh and spoke
“Go ahead, make my day. I am a grumpy old man and don’t give a fuck. But it would make a great youtube or ticktock don’t you think? ICE agents haze ling old man and old female army vet, and tazing them. Great PR, man.”
They laugh and warn us to watch our attitude.
“Roger that dude. Everyone tells me that for some reason. Thanks for pointing it out. I will work on that. Thank you for your service dude. “ ]
and they walk off.
The whole incident was captured on video and goes viral.
The War on Civil Service Expands
Most federal employees are now classified as scheduled F and most will work on renewable five year contracts. All Federal employees must pass new stringent security standards
This include signing a loyalty oath, banning trans gendered people, LGBTQ members, overly partisan people, excessive alcohol use, excessive gambling, engagement with prostitution, or pornography, drug usage even where it is legal, and reading prohibited political content online or at work, and must exhibit exemplary moral conduct with including church services being a big plus and being an athiest or non-religious member a big negative but not banned per see. And they must past stringent financial disclosure requirements and finally pass a drug test annually.
Hiring Only Religious College Graduates To Staff The Federal Government
The office of Personal Management announces that the Federal Government will focus on hiring only from religious colleges, state colleges, and home schooling academies instead of hiring from elite colleges, and HBUC from now on. This would apply to all Federal hiring authorities. Furthermore Harvard and elite college graduates need not apply for federal positions with State, CIA or law enforcement agencies either. The expectation is that people will serve six to seven five year renewable contracts before being eligible for retirement which will be required at age 65. .
Foreign Service Test Ended
The Secretary of State announces a fundamental change to the State Department. The foreign service is ended, instead all employees will be hired based on an AI review of their resume, past education and experience. This will include current employees and new employees. All employees will spend 40 percent of their career overseas and 60 percent domestically, including working in field offices. While overseas they will be given diplomatic status, while in domestic assignments they will be given civil service status and work on five year renewable contracts.
All State Department employees are now classified as scheduled F and most will work on renewable five year contracts. All Federal employees must pass new stringent security standards
This include signing a loyalty oath, banning trans gendered people, LGBTQ members, overly partisan people, excessive alcohol use, excessive gambling, engagement with prostitution, or pornography, drug usage even where it is legal, and reading prohibited political content online or at work, and must exhibit exemplary moral conduct with including church services being a big plus and being an athiest or non-religious member a big negative but not banned per see. And they must past stringent financial disclosure requirements and finally pass a drug test annually.
The Visa Function And Consular Affairs Positions Will Be Transferred To A New Cabinet Level Immigration And Naturalization Service
This new agency will staff embassies and consulates overseas as well as domestic POE positions and back office opperations, again on five year schedule positions and meeting the new security standards. While overseas they will be given foreign service diplomatic status and while in domestic assignments serve as civil service positions.
The expectation is that people will serve six to seven five year renewable contracts before being eligible for retirement which will be required at age 65. .
But most visa applications will now be handled through an expanded EVA process with only first time applicants requiring interviews. All visa applicants will undergo ideological vetting but the expectation is that 90 percent of applicants will be granted entry visas which will be valid for five year renewable contracts.
Human Rights Reports Ended
The State Department announces the annual human rights reports are ending once Congress approves the new procedures This will also mean a cutback on a lot of other onerous reporting requirements on Embassies and consulates. The final HR reports will be due in April 2026 and ceased afterwards assuming congressional approval. Labor officers, EST officer positions will also be eliminated as will refugee admissions officers, as these positions should be conducted by the Department of Labor, and the new Immigration and Consular Affairs Department. And the INR bureaus will be phased out as that should be done by the CIA, and INL positions will be transferred to DEA. Total staffing for the State Department will be cut by 40 percent effective immediately.
JD Vance And The Leaders Of The Congress And Cabinet Agree After A Week Of Unhinged Rants By President Trump That They Had Enough And Removed The President
After a weekend of unhinged rants, JD Vance and the cabinet agree that the President is obviously suffering from Alzheimer’s and getting worst. JD Vance announces that the President has been removed due to his inability to handle the responsibilities of the job. JD Vance promised to review everything and make some changes to what President Trump had proposed in a more rational manner, in full consultation with congressional leaders, the cabinet, and with the support of the public. Beginning with tariffs, which will be lowered to five percent, but the trade deals consultations will continue leading to new deals by the end of the year.
All revenues from tariffs will be divided into three tranches of money – paying down the debt, general revenue for the government, and a new infrastructure bank to fund continued improvements to physical infrastructure across the country. At the end of the process, there would be free and fair trade with most countries around the world, with some countries paying zero, and most paying 5 percent and US exporters generally pay five percent on exports to other countries. Existing free trade agreements will be revised, and new ones negotiated with EU and Asia Pacific trade partners.
The DOGE office will be converted to a formal advisory committee and continue working with government agencies to make the government more transparent and efficient, including using AI technologies throughout the government.
Reorganization plans will continue with the goal being most Federal government office relocated outside of DC, with only headquaters functions in DC remaining which was what the intention of the founding fathers.
Federal lands will be made available for logging, mining etc with the exception of already authorized wilderness areas, national parks, and monuments. Some Federal lands could be transferred to state control and that would be subject to further discussions.
Support for NPR and CPR will be ended.
USAID will become part of the State Department and continue to play a role but at a reduced level than before.
Visa policies will be revamped. A new Department of immigration and consular affairs will be created merging units from DHS, State and Labor into a new agency. Most visa decisions will be made via EVA except for new applicants and people living in countries that have problematic issues who will require visa interviews.
Student visas will require social media vetting but most students will not have a problem and most applicants will be approved remotely and for first time applicants an interview at the US embassy or consulate.
The US still wants foreign students and we will ask Congress to enact a new law that will allow foreign students who wish to stay in the US, have a job offer and can of course speak English be allowed to convert their status upon graduation into green cards like many of our foreign competitors due.
We will also overhaul the immigration system as part of the reorganization with a new immigration act enacted.
Re deportation we are open to changing the law so that aliens married to US citizens and or have US citizen children can petition to stay and convert their status provided they have no criminal background, speak Engish and are working or have job offers. It makes no sense to deport people with US citizen relatives. Deportation should be focused on criminal aliens.
Other aliens who have been working in the US for decades can apply for temporary green cards provided they speak English, have no criminal record and have employment offers. This amnesty will be limited.
The border will be sealed otherwise with US military forces helping to patrol the border region. Entry will be limited to authorized check points only. Amnesty applications and refugee applications will be handled through normal channels.
There will also be an expanded guest worker program. These visas will be renewable visas and after ten years can be converted to permanent residency.
There will be those who scream this is amnesty. So be it. It is time for a rational review of immigration and those who are here contributing to the US should be allowed to stay. New visas should be easier to obtain but limited. The F4 sibling category will be eliminated but those in the queue can apply provided they do so within one year.
President Donald Trump is reportedly considering a freeze on federal funding to the state of California — but Gov. Gavin Newsom has hit back with a threat of his own.
“Californians pay the bills for the federal government,” wrote Newsom in a post to X on Friday. “We pay over $80 BILLION more in taxes than we get back. Maybe it’s time to cut that off, @realDonaldTrump.”
Studies have repeatedly shown that Democratic-voting states like California tend to produce more in taxes for the federal government than they receive back in benefits and federal spending, due both to the fact that many of these states contain some of the largest and wealthiest cities in the United States, and the fact that many Republican-voting states rely on military spending and employment.
Notable exceptions to this pattern include Maryland and Virginia, two primarily Democratic-voting states which border the nation’s capital and thus are home to a number of federal agencies and employees, as well as Texas, which broadly votes for Republicans but also is home to several large and wealthy metropolitan areas.
Studies have repeatedly shown that Democratic-voting states like California tend to produce more in taxes for the federal government than they receive back in benefits and federal spending, due both to the fact that many of these states contain some of the largest and wealthiest cities in the United States, and the fact that many Republican-voting states rely on military spending and employment.
Notable exceptions to this pattern include Maryland and Virginia, two primarily Democratic-voting states which border the nation’s capital and thus are home to a number of federal agencies and employees, as well as Texas, which broadly votes for Republicans but also is home to several large and wealthy metropolitan areas.
Former Trump White House aide turned podcaster Steve Bannon slammed the White House for not having its eye on South Korea ahead of the country electing left-wing leader Lee Jae-myung, who has signaled frustration over President Donald Trump’s tariff policies.
“You heard there at the end about the Korea situation we’ve been covering. The winner got 48 and a half or 49% of the vote. ‘South Korea trusts in end to turmoil with Lee’s sweeping election victory,’ sweeping election victory,” Bannon said, reading and holding up the frontpage headline of the Financial Times.
And right there, for those in the State Department not paying attention or the White House have not been paying attention to this, they gave two F-Us. Number one, we’re going to take our time on a, you know, we are not going to be the first guys. And we’re going to take our time on a trade deal,” Bannon continued, adding:
President Trump put out another ultimatum, I think last night, or Bessent or Lonick, hey, we need them all in like immediately. They’re under new ownership in South Korea. And yeah, we’re gonna have, under the table, we got step-by-step better relationships with Beijing. Everybody that was asleep on the watch on this thing, payback is gonna be bad, folks. Gonna be bad. Just one of many things.
Bannon sounding the alarm on South Korea turning toward China and slow-rolling a trade deal on Trump’s tariffs highlights a major failure of Trump’s current foreign policy. South Korea, the world’s 12th largest economy, has long been a key U.S. ally in Asia. South Korea is one of the world’s largest exporters of products targeted by Trump’s tariffs, including automobiles and smartphones.
South Korea’s new president, Lee Jae-myung, has secured a storming victory, but his honeymoon will barely last the day.
The former opposition leader is not getting to enjoy the two-month transition period usually afforded to new leaders, so they can build their team and nail down their vision for the country.
If these tariffs take effect “they could trigger an economic crisis”, a seasoned advisor to Lee’s Democratic Party, Moon Chung-in, said.
Before Trump’s announcements, South Korea’s economy was already slowing down. The chaos of martial law constricted it further. Then, in the first quarter of this year, it contracted. Fixing this has been voters’ number one demand, even above fixing their beleaguered democracy.
But without a president, talks with Trump have been on hold. They cannot be put off any longer.
And there is much more than South Korea’s economy at stake in these negotiations.
The US currently guarantees South Korea’s security, by promising to come to its defence with both conventional and nuclear weapons, were it to be attacked by its nuclear-armed neighbour, North Korea. As part of this deal there are 28,500 US troops stationed in the country.
The new president must move quickly on all fronts, added Mr Revere, arguing that Lee’s first homework assignment should be to come up with a list of 10 reasons why South Korea is an indispensable partner and why American dollars are being well spent; reasons that can convince a skeptical and transactional Trump.
One Ace card South Korea is hoping to play is its shipbuilding prowess. It builds more vessels than any other country bar China, which is now the world’s dominant ship builder and home to the largest naval fleet. This is a frightening prospect for the US whose own industry and navy are in decline.
Last month I visited South Korea’s flagship shipyard in Ulsan on the south coast – the largest in the world – where Hyundai Heavy Industries builds 40-50 new ships a year, including naval destroyers. Sturdy cranes slotted together sheets of metal, creating vessels the size of small villages.
Seoul is hoping it can use this expertise to build, repair and maintain warships for the US, and in the process convince Washington it is a valuable partner.
“US shipbuilding difficulties are affecting their national security”, said Jeong Woo Maan, head of strategy for Hyundai’s naval and ship unit. “This is one of the strongest cards we have to negotiate with”.
In his campaign for president, Lee Jae-myung declared he did not want to rush into any agreements with Trump. Now in office, he could quickly find himself without this luxury.
I am trying not to comment on the nightmare that Trump 2.0 is becoming because well there is little I can do about it, and I don’t want to end up on a government hit list because I expressed even mild criticism of the new neo-fascist regime taking place.
I wanted to provide an update on my earlier blog post about the war on the LGBTQ+ community, where I expressed concern that if Trump returned to power, life for my LGBTQ+ friends would become very difficult. Unfortunately, my worst fears have been realized.
One of the most significant changes has been Trump’s official decree that the U.S. government will only
recognize two genders: male and female, assigned at birth.
This policy attempts to erase the legal status of transgender individuals and has been a long-standing demand of social conservatives. The ripple effects have been profound, including banning transgender people from serving in the military and even
restricting their ability to travel to the U.S.
I asked Copilot to provide additional background and included some links for
reference.
Copilot said:
The Trump administration has implemented several policies that have significantly impacted the LGBTQ+ community, particularly transgender individuals. These include executive orders and state-level initiatives that restrict rights and access to services. Here’s a breakdown:
Anti-LGBTQ+ Policies
Federal Actions:
The administration has reinstated bans on transgender individuals serving in the military, restricted gender-affirming healthcare for minors, and removed diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs from federal
agencies.
Travel Restrictions:
A recent State Department policy could deny visas to transgender individuals if their documents do not
match their sex assigned at birth. According to the new policy, visas can not be issued in cases of “gender fraud”. This policy is tied to broader efforts to exclude transgender athletes from women’s Sports.
Criminalization of Trans Identity:
In Texas, a proposed bill seeks to make identifying as transgender a felony under “gender identity fraud,” punishable by jail time and fines. While unlikely to pass, it
reflects a growing trend of extreme legislative measures targeting transgender individuals.
Banning Trans women from using the bathroom in Congressional buildings and other government facilities
the House of Representatives has banned trans women from using the wrong bathroom at the House of Represenatives. This policy was enacted to punish the only trans woman congresswoman. The House Seargent of Arms has been called several times to prevent alleged trans women from the crime of using the wrong bathroom. These demeaning bathroom bans are spreading everywhere. there will be more cases of trans people being arrested for using the wrong bathroom as these “bans” become widespread.
Ending DEI programs in the Federal government
President Trump has ended all DEI programs in the Federal government and has been pressuring State governments to do the same and even threathening to take away Federal funding from Universites who do not end DEI programs including ethnic studies programs, woman studies programs and queer studies programs. The crack down is widespread.
Government agencies have been scrubbing their public facing web pages to remove all references to DEI issues including banning the use of words such as race, gender, LGBTQ, trans, gay and references to native Americans for example. DOD removed pictures of the famous world war 11 Hiroshima bomber apparently because the plane name was Enola Gay and the AI program removed it due to the prohibited word, “Gay”.
Misusing AI to Scrub Government Web pages in an Orwellian manner
Musk and DOGE do not see this initiative as a fraudulent waste of taxpayer dollars which it is as government employees are being forced to spend time scrubbing government web pages in sn Orwellian program of offending phrases using AI programs.
CO-Pilot gives the latest background
President Trump’s anti-DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) campaign has been a significant and polarizing initiative. His administration has taken steps to dismantle DEI programs across federal agencies, universities, and even private companies. This includes executive orders and memos warning institutions that they could lose federal funding if they continue using race-based preferences in areas like admissions, scholarships, or hiring.
The campaign has led to federal investigations into over 50 universities, focusing on partnerships with organizations like the PhD Project, which supports underrepresented groups in business education. Critics argue these partnerships may involve race-exclusionary practices. Additionally, some universities are being scrutinized for offering race-based scholarships.
Supporters of the campaign claim it promotes merit-based opportunities and eliminates what they see as reverse discrimination against white and Asian American individuals. Opponents, however, argue that it undermines efforts to address systemic inequities and creates barriers for marginalized communities.
This initiative has sparked legal challenges and debates about the role of DEI in fostering inclusive environments. It’s a complex issue with far-reaching implications for education, employment, and social equity.
Left-Wing Analysis
Progressive voices argue that these policies are part of a broader rollback of civil rights, framing them as attacks on personal freedoms and human dignity. Critics
highlight the mental health toll and increased vulnerability to discrimination and violence for LGBTQ+ individuals.
Right-Wing Analysis
Conservative perspectives often justify these measures as protecting traditional values, religious freedoms, and fairness in areas like sports and education. They argue that such policies address societal concerns about gender identity and its implications.
Opposition to LGBTQ rights is often framed by critics as being rooted in traditional Christian values, with several biblical passages and religious arguments frequently cited. Here are some examples:
### Biblical Citations 1. **Leviticus 18:22** and **Leviticus 20:13**: These verses describe same-sex relations as an “abomination” and prescribe severe punishments in the context of Old Testament law[_{{{CITATION{{{_1
{25 Bible Verses about Homosexuality – What Does Scripture Say? –
**Romans 1:26-27**: The Apostle Paul refers to same-sex relations as “dishonorable passions” and contrary to God’s natural order[_{{{CITATION{{{_
1{25 Bible Verses about Homosexuality – What Does Scripture Say? –
This passage lists “men who practice homosexuality” among those who will not inherit the Kingdom of God[_{{{CITATION{{{_1{25 Bible Verses about Homosexuality –
### Broader Religious Justifications – **Natural Law**: Some Christian theologians argue that LGBTQ relationships contradict “natural law,” which they interpret as God’s design for human sexuality and procreation. –
**Religious Freedom**: Critics often invoke religious liberty to justify actions or policies that oppose LGBTQ rights, claiming that compliance with such rights would violate their sincerely held religious beliefs
These interpretations and arguments are not universally accepted within Christianity, and many theologians and denominations advocate for LGBTQ inclusion, emphasizing themes of love, justice, and equality. The debate often reflects broader tensions between traditional interpretations of scripture and evolving understandings of human rights and diversity.
These interpretations and arguments are not universally accepted within
Christianity, and many theologians and denominations advocate for LGBTQ
inclusion, emphasizing themes of love, justice, and equality. The debate often
reflects broader tensions between traditional interpretations of scripture and
evolving understandings of human rights and diversity.
Christian denominations hold a wide range of views on LGBTQ rights, reflecting diverse theological interpretations and cultural contexts. Here’s an overview:
Denominations Opposing LGBTQ Rights
Roman Catholic Church: Officially opposes same-sex marriage and considers homosexual acts sinful, though it emphasizes compassion and respect for LGBTQ individuals.
Eastern Orthodox Church: Similar to Catholicism, it opposes same-sex relationships and marriage, adhering to traditional teachings on sexuality.
Evangelical Protestant Churches: Many evangelical groups, such as the Southern Baptist Convention, oppose LGBTQ rights, citing biblical interpretations that view homosexuality as sinful.
Denominations Supporting LGBTQ Rights
Episcopal Church: Welcomes LGBTQ individuals and allows same-sex marriage ceremonies.
United Church of Christ: Fully affirms LGBTQ rights, including marriage equality and ordination of LGBTQ clergy.
Presbyterian Church (USA): Supports same-sex marriage and ordains LGBTQ clergy.
Metropolitan Community Church: Founded specifically to serve LGBTQ Christians and advocates for full inclusion.
Divided Denominations
Anglican Communion: Deeply divided, with some branches (e.g., Episcopal Church in the U.S.) affirming LGBTQ rights, while others (e.g., Anglican Church in Africa) oppose them.
Methodist Church: The United Methodist Church is currently experiencing a schism over LGBTQ inclusion, with some congregations breaking away to form more conservative groups
Muslim Community
The Muslim community generally agrees with the anti-LGBTQ views of conservative Christians and in most Muslim countries LGBTQ people face discrimination if not legal consequences including in some cases execution. Hungary and Russia are also countries where anti-LGBTQ views have become government policy. Africa is also a hotbed of opposition to LGBTQ rights.
SE Asia more Tolerant
SE Asia especially Thailand is one of the few areas where LGBTQ rights are celebrated, Thailand has joined Tawain in legalizing same-sex marriages and Thailand remains the main destination for sex reassignment surgery.
With Trump’s Election, the Republican-led War on the LGBTQ community will continue. Rep. Nancy Mace vowed to ensure that the only trans woman ever elected will not be allowed to use the woman’s bathroom in the People’s House. She even went around putting up signs in front of restrooms “Biological Women only” vowing she would not allow women with Penises to use the woman’s room. Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Defense has vowed to kick trans people out of the military. Trump has pulled back a bit, now says he does not want to weight in on bathroom bans as it only affects a few people. But the LGBTQ community is feeling the pressure and is afraid that the war against them will continue.
This is personal for me as I have had several trans friends over the years, one of my college roommate transited from a man to a lesbian woman, another friend transitioned from a woman into a man.
Here are some recent articles on this topic.
Getting rid of the LGBTQ Community
by legal fiat
the MAGA movement leaders
the cynical overlords behind Trump
have a plan to get rid of the trans community
and the LGBTQ Community
by legal fiat
their plans spelled out in the infamous
Project 2025 and Agenda 47
and speeches by Trump and Vance
and their craven fellow travelers
Declaring that there are only two genders
God assigned male and Female at birth.
Banning sex reassignment and changing IDs
Banning people from using the bathroom
of their choice
making using the wrong restroom
a federal sex crime
Enforced by citizen arrests
no doubt some people
will settle these disputes
through their Second Amendment rights.
the craven Supreme Court will no doubt
accept their claim they felt threatened
by a trans person using the wrong restroom.
Banning “biological” males from
participating in women’s sports.
Just like that, there would
There would no longer
be trans people.
firing LGBTQ people
from sensitive government jobs
turning it back to the states
to make such status illegal again
And gay marriage would be illegal.
Putting the LGBTQ community
back in the closet
or forcing them to flee
to more LGBTQ friendly countries.
Banning abortions nationwide
banning contraception too
banning porno and sex education
and making most divorces
illegal,
thus restoring the power
of the white man
to rule forever
just as God intended.
LGBTQ+ Americans stockpile meds and make plans to move after Trump’s win
Zoei Montgomery, a 25-year-old transgender woman, is preparing for Donald Trump’s second term by stockpiling medicines in case her access is cut off. (Annabel Clark for The Washington Post)
Zoei Montgomery is so nervous about Donald Trump’s second presidency that she is making plans to escape to Canada if life in the United States becomes intolerable for her as a transgender woman.
The middle-school custodian fears that the incoming president will follow the lead of Republican governors who have restricted access to gender-affirming care and made it illegal for people to change their gender markers on official documents.
“I would hate to leave home,” said Montgomery, 25, who lives in Washington state. “But it makes me less anxious to have an exit plan in place.”
As Trump’s inauguration nears, some LGBTQ+ people are anxiously preparing for what they fear will be a rollback of their rights. Some in same-sex relationships are making plans to marry or to adopt children. Others are moving to states that they believe will offer them more protection. Transgender people are stockpiling medications, worried that their access to gender transition care will be cut off.
Trump has vowed to prohibit gender transition care for children and eliminate any federal spending on those treatments for adults. He has also promised to ask Congress to pass a bill stating that there are only two genders and that they are assigned at birth. And the incoming president wants to use Title IX protections to ensure that transgender women can’t play on women’s sports teams.
Anti-trans bills have doubled since 2022. Our map shows where states stand.
While some of his promises would be difficult to enact, and many others such as banning access to health care probablywouldbe challenged in court, Trump will have the advantage of Republican controlin Congress and could also enact some changes through executive action.
Trump’s transition team hasn’t provided further details on his plans, but a spokeswoman for the incoming administration said his campaign focused on “common sense policies” that Americans want.
“Clearly, the American people agree with President Trump and that’s why they voted for him in a landslide,” spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said.
A survey conducted by Fox News and the Associated Press found that about 55 percent of voters said support for transgender rights in government and society “has gone too far,” and that 77 percent of this group supported Trump.
The survey also found that 51 percent of voters opposed laws banning gender-affirming medical treatment such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy for transgender youths. Among those who do support the ban, 65 percent supported Trump.
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court’s conservative majority appeared reluctant to block a Tennessee law restricting transgender minors from accessing puberty blockers and hormones as part of their gender transition care. The ruling will affect thousands of transgender youths who live in one of the 24 states, including Tennessee, that have banned similar treatments.
Trans rights were far from the top issue for many voters this election, said Republican pollster Robert Blizzard, but the topic was an animating force for some. Swing-state voters, he said, were angry with Democrats who they said pushed “trans ideology” onto children.
Blizzard, who did not do polling work for the Trump campaign, said voters were worried about children.
“That’s a big concern for a lot of folks across the country, minors making decisions that will change their lives and bodies long-term.”
Michele Zavos, a D.C.-based attorney specializing in LGBTQ+ family law, said it’s a “very complicated time” for the community.
“Rights that we thought were resolved seem to once again be at risk,” she said.
Even before Trump won the presidency, LGBTQ+ people had endured several tumultuous years. Republican lawmakers in statehouses and the U.S. Capitol have introduced a record number of bills aimed at restricting LGBTQ+ rights under President Joe Biden. Schools in Florida and North Carolina have fired gay teachers. Trans children have lost access to health care they describe as lifesaving. And Republicans spent at least $215 million on election ads that painted trans people as the nation’s most pressing threat.
In the initial weeks after the election, LGBTQ+ people and advocacy groups say some of their worst fears are already coming true. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-South Carolina) introduced a measure to bar trans women from women’s bathrooms in the Capitol and all other federal properties two weeks after Sarah McBride (D-Delaware) was elected the nation’s first transgender member of Congress.
Many of Trump’s Cabinet picks have also endorsed anti-trans policies.
Former Hawaii congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, the president-elect’s pick for director of national intelligence, introduced a bill in 2020 to prohibit trans women from playing on women’s sports teams. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida), Trump’s choicefor secretary of state, introduced a bill in 2023 to ban anyone with a history of gender dysphoria from the U.S. military. And South Dakota Gov. Kristi L. Noem (R), selectedto head the Department of Homeland Security, signed a ban on gender-affirming health care for trans youths last year.
Montgomerysaid she has been stockpiling estradiol and spironolactone pills since September. She now has enough to last her a few weeks if federal lawmakers banned her care, she said.
“Many people around me are acting like everything is the same since Nov. 5,” she said. “But nothing will be the same for the LGBTQ+ community once Trump’s in power, and he has promised that.”
‘Building a raft on a tsunami’
When Trump first won office in 2016, the LGBTQ+ community was celebrating several milestone victories. The Supreme Court had granted same-sex couples the right to marry the year before, and not long after, President Barack Obama directed schools across the country to allow transgender students to use bathrooms, locker rooms and other facilities that match their gender identity.
But some of those wins were quickly changed when Trump took office. Within a month of his inauguration, Trump revoked the Obama-era guidelines on transgender students. He also ordered the Pentagon to ban transgender service members from the military.
Later on, under Biden, GOP state lawmakers began targeting a range of things, such as LGBTQ+-friendly books in public schools and gender-affirming care for children. So far, 26 states have banned trans girls and women from playing on sports teams that align with their gender identity.
Then came this year’s presidential campaign. Candidates across the country ran more than 200 anti-trans ads on network TV, according to a Washington Post analysis of data compiled by AdImpact. Trump’s super PACs spent at least $50 million on anti-trans ads, and his campaign made “Kamala is for they/them” a reelection slogan.
“There’s a lot of general fear, panic and hopelessness in the community,” said Janson Wu, a senior director at the Trevor Project, a nonprofit that provides support to LGBTQ+ youths aimed at suicide prevention and crisis intervention.
“Many people, especially the younger ones, are wondering if they can continue living under these political attacks.”
While some queer and trans families did flee to more LGBTQ+-friendly states during the Biden years, others couldn’t afford to move, or didn’t want to, even as new laws restrictedtheir rights. Now, nonprofit workers say they are hearing from a record number of people who want to relocate to liberal states with explicit protections for gay and trans people.
Keira Richards and a group of friends have been helping people move to Colorado since last year. Normally, their nonprofit, theTrans Continental Pipeline, works with an average of 15 people a month. In the week after the election, Richards said 350 people contacted the group to ask for assistance.
“They don’t want to leave,” said Richards, the Trans Continental Pipeline’s executive director.“But they just feel like they don’t have a choice.”
Richards’s group is staffed by five volunteers who operate on a shoestring budget. Most people need between $2,000 and $4,000 to move to Denver. And rents in the Mile High City aren’t cheap: The average apartment rent isnearly $1,700 per month, according to Apartments.com. Some of those contacting Richards say they can afford to pay only $400 a month.
We’re building a raft on a tsunami,” Richards said. “We’re just trying to be able to meet the need that is suddenly here.”
Jake Nichols, a gay 18-year-old from Jefferson City, Missouri, plans to move to California, where his grandmother lives, when he graduates from high school in May. Nichols said he withdrew his acceptance from a university in Missouri after he noticed how emboldened his classmates have become since Trump’s win.
“They say stuff like ‘You queer people will have to go back in the closet now,’ and ‘Without you parading around, we will make America great again like it used to be,’” he said. “Missouri’s not the place for me right now.”
Nichols said he is worried about an erosion of LGBTQ+ rights, including same-sex marriage, under Trump.
Although Trump did not focus on same-sex marriage during his campaign, many in the LGBTQ+ community are concerned that the high court could eventually rescind that right. They point to the court’s conservative supermajority and Justice Clarence Thomas’s concurring opinion in the case overturning Roe v. Wade,in which he stated that the justices should reconsider their 2015 ruling on same-sex marriages.
Bookstores, bars and ordained ministers across the country have offered to host or perform free weddings for gay couples since Trump was elected to another term. Some, like Harold’s Haunt, an LGBTQ+-friendly bar in Pittsburgh, are planning to put up wedding decorations for couples who “need to get married really quick.”
Other LGBTQ+ couples are worried about their parental rights.
Zavos, the family law attorney, said she has seen an uptick in calls, emails and Facebook messages from same-sex couples who fear that the incoming administration or the Supreme Court could curtail their adoption rights.
Some want to fast-track their adoption plans. Others want to start the lengthy second-parent adoption process, which would secure the parental rights of nonbiological parents. Zavos saidLGBTQ+ families want to secure all the protections they can in a landscape where rights are being threatened.
“I had taken a semi-retirement,” Zavos said. “But given the circumstances, I will unretire to help the community through this crisis.”
An exit by kayak
Trump’s winning has been especially distressing for many young people. The Trevor Project registered a nearly 700 percent increase in calls, texts and chat messages to its crisis services the day after the election, compared with the weeks prior.
State laws targeting transgender people made trans and nonbinary youths between 25 percent and 27 percent more likely to attempt suicide at least once in the second and third years after being enacted, a recent study published in the Nature Human Behavior journal concluded.
Carolyn Fischer knows firsthand how devastating the election has been for some LGBTQ+ teens. She said her 16-year-old son, who is trans, made a pact with three other young trans people to die by suicide if Trump won. The children met on Discord, an online chat platform popular with video gamers, and Fisher said they had discussed how upset they were by the anti-transgender rhetoric coming from Republicans on social media and television.
A few days before the election, Fisher said, her son called the Rainbow Youth Project, a nonprofit that offers crisis counseling to at-risk LGBTQ+ youths and asked for help. All four of the trans adolescents are now receiving counseling, but at least one is still experiencing suicidal ideation.
Fisher and her husband are Republicans who had planned to vote for Trump. But on Election Day, they cast their ballots for Kamala Harris and decorated their front yard with a Pride flag to show support for LGBTQ+ people in the community.
Fisher and her husband have considered leaving their hometown to give their son a fresh start, but they don’t know where they should go.
“Nowhere in the country seems safe for LGBTQ+ kids right now,” she said.
Montgomery, the school custodian from Washington state, is so fearful about life during a second Trump administration that she is preparing an exit plan that includes a kayak.
Her first choice is to remain in Kitsap County, but if her access to gender transition care is limited, she said, she’ll take a ferry to British Columbia. In her “nightmare scenario,” transgender people would be forced to detransition or stop all gender transition medications and live in accordance with the sex they were assigned at birth. She said she would be afraid to go to any official U.S. port of entry if that happened and would instead kayak to Canada.
Montgomery estimates the 20-mile journey by sea would take at least four hours.
“If my worst fears came true,” she said, “I would be compelled to leave.”
rtainly! Let’s explore the positions on LGBTQ rights associated with Project 2024, Agenda 47, and recent speeches by Donald Trump and JD Vance:
Project 2024:
Overview: Project 2024 is a comprehensive policy handbook associated with the Trump administration. While it covers various topics, its stance on LGBTQ rights has been controversial.
Key Points:
Project 2024 calls for a ban on pornography, which is defined so broadly that it includes books featuring same-sex couples and even the existence of transgender people.
The administration aimed to erode protections for transgender students and workers.
It sought to weaken access to gender-affirming health care.
Overview: Dubbed “Agenda 47,” Trump’s policy platform targets public school teachers embroiled in culture wars and aims to undo civil rights protections for LGBTQ people.
Specifics:
Vance proposed a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, similar to a bill introduced by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Trump’s campaign pledges to dismantle Biden administration policies protecting transgender students under Title IX.
A second Trump administration would strip LGBTQ people of protections against discrimination in various contexts (employment, housing, education, health care, etc.).
In summary, both Trump and Vance have taken positions that raise concerns for LGBTQ rights. While Trump’s administration aimed to roll back protections, Vance’s controversial remarks have drawn criticism from LGBTQ advocacy groups. As voters, it’s essential to consider these stances when evaluating candidates’ impact on LGBTQ communities. 🌈🗳️
Sent by Copilot:
Certainly! Let’s explore the positions on LGBTQ rights associated with Project 2024, Agenda 47, and recent speeches by Donald Trump and JD Vance:
Project 2024:
Overview: Project 2024 is a comprehensive policy handbook associated with the Trump administration. While it covers various topics, its stance on LGBTQ rights has been controversial.
Key Points:
Project 2024 calls for a ban on pornography, which is defined so broadly that it includes books featuring same-sex couples and even the existence of transgender people.
The administration aimed to erode protections for transgender students and workers.
It sought to weaken access to gender-affirming health care.
Overview: Dubbed “Agenda 47,” Trump’s policy platform targets public school teachers embroiled in culture wars and aims to undo civil rights protections for LGBTQ people.
Specifics:
Vance proposed a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, similar to a bill introduced by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Trump’s campaign pledges to dismantle Biden administration policies protecting transgender students under Title IX.
A second Trump administration would strip LGBTQ people of protections against discrimination in various contexts (employment, housing, education, health care, etc.).
In summary, both Trump and Vance have taken positions that raise concerns for LGBTQ rights. While Trump’s administration aimed to roll back protections, Vance’s controversial remarks have drawn criticism from LGBTQ advocacy groups. As voters, it’s essential to consider these stances when evaluating candidates’ impact on LGBTQ communities. 🌈🗳️
Sent by Copilot:
Certainly! Transgender rights have been shaped significantly by court cases over the years. Let’s explore some notable ones:
& G.R. Harris Funeral Homes v. EEOC & Aimee Stephens:
Background: Aimee Stephens, a transgender woman, worked as a funeral director at R.G. and G.R. Harris Funeral Homes. When she informed her employer about her gender identity, she was fired. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) sued on her behalf.
Context: Becky, a middle school student in West Virginia, wanted to try out for the cross-country team. However, a new state law would ban her from doing so because she is transgender.
Background: The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and ACLU of Alabama filed a federal lawsuit against officials of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA). The lawsuit challenges ALEA’s practice of depriving transgender people of driver’s licenses that reflect their gender identity.
These cases highlight the ongoing struggle for transgender rights in various contexts, including employment, education, and identification. Court decisions play a crucial role in shaping the legal landscape and advancing equality for transgender individuals. 🌈🏛️ Learn more
The GOP war on the LGBTQ community continues unabated
The republican rhetoric suggests that if the win the election (president) they will take action against the LGBTQ community including bans on LGBTQ people from serving in the government or military, authorizing discrimination against the LGBTQ community if it violates someone’s religious views, enacting a nation-wide standard regarding public access to bathrooms in public facilities, enacting a nation-wide ban on gender-affirming care for minors, and banning trans woman from participating in women’s sports.
Co-PIlot and Gemini provide some answers (below) and I have included some media accounts as well.
Co-PIlot answer
There has been a surge of anti-LGBTQ legislation in many states across the US, especially targeting transgender youth. According to the Human Rights Campaign1, some of the bills that have passed or are advancing in Texas, Florida and Utah are:
Yes, there are other states that have passed laws that restrict transgender people’s access to bathrooms or facilities according to their gender identity. According to the Movement Advancement Project1, a total of 10 states have such laws as of January 2024. They are:
There are many examples of right-wing preachers who have made anti-LGBTQ comments, including calling for the execution of the LGBTQ community. Here are some of them:
Pat Robertson: He is the founder of the Christian Broadcasting Network and the host of The 700 Club, and he has made numerous anti-LGBTQ statements, such as saying that homosexuality is a “perversion” and a “sin” that leads to bestiality, pedophilia, and polygamy. He also blamed the 2010 Haiti earthquake that killed over 200,000 people on a “pact with the devil” made by Haitians to gain independence from France.
These are just some of the examples of the hateful and harmful rhetoric that some right-wing preachers have used against the LGBTQ community. Such rhetoric can incite violence, discrimination, and oppression against LGBTQ people, and it contradicts the principles of human dignity and equality.
President Trump has been widely criticized for his views and policies on LGBTQ rights, which have been seen as hostile, regressive, and harmful by many LGBTQ advocates and organizations. Some of the actions he has taken or supported include:
If Trump were to run for a second term in 2024, he would likely continue to pursue these anti-LGBTQ policies and appoint judges and officials who share his views. He would also face strong opposition from LGBTQ activists and allies, who have mobilized to resist his attacks and advance LGBTQ rights at the state and local levels.
Nikki Haley is a former governor of South Carolina and a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, who is considered a potential Republican presidential candidate in 2024. She has a mixed record on LGBTQ rights, which has evolved over time. Some of the positions she has taken or expressed include:
If Haley were to run for president in 2024, she would likely face criticism from both sides of the political spectrum on LGBTQ issues. She would have to balance her appeal to the conservative base of the Republican Party, which is largely anti-LGBTQ, with her attempt to reach out to moderate and independent voters, who are more supportive of LGBTQ rights.
President Biden has been a vocal and consistent supporter of LGBTQ rights, both as a senator, a vice president, and a president. He has been praised by LGBTQ advocates and organizations for his views and policies on LGBTQ issues, which have been seen as progressive, inclusive, and beneficial by many LGBTQ people. Some of the actions he has taken or promised include:
Reversing the ban on transgender people serving openly in the military .
Restoring and expanding protections for transgender students in schools .
Issuing an executive order to prevent and combat discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in various sectors .
Increasing funding for HIV/AIDS research and prevention programs .
Supporting the Equality Act, a bill that would prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in various sectors .
Issuing an executive order to advance the human rights of LGBTQI+ people around the world .
If Biden were to run for a second term in 2024, he would likely continue to pursue these pro-LGBTQ policies and appoint judges and officials who share his views. He would also face challenges from anti-LGBTQ forces, who have been trying to undermine his actions and enact discriminatory laws at the state and local levels.
Gemini’s Answer
there has been a lot of proposed and passed anti-LGBTQ legislation recently. Please list them particualary in Texas, Florida and Utah
You’re right, there has been a surge of anti-LGBTQ legislation in the United States recently, with Florida, Texas, and Utah being some of the most active states. Here are some examples:
Florida:
“Don’t Say Gay” law (Parental Rights in Education Act): Prohibits classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity from kindergarten to grade 3, and in a way that is not “age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate” in any grade. This law has been widely criticized for marginalizing LGBTQ students and creating a hostile school environment.
Transgender athlete ban: Bans transgender girls and women from competing on female sports teams in public high schools and colleges. This law has been condemned by LGBTQ rights groups and athletes as discriminatory and harmful.
Texas:
“Save Chick-fil-A” law (Freedom of Speech in Religious Institutions Act): Allows faith-based organizations to deny services to LGBTQ people based on their religious beliefs. This law has been challenged in court by LGBTQ rights groups.
Anti-trans healthcare bills: Several bills have been proposed or passed in Texas that would restrict access to gender-affirming healthcare for transgender youth. These bills have been met with fierce opposition from medical professionals and LGBTQ rights groups.
Utah:
“Bathroom bill” (School Facility Privacy Act): Requires individuals to use restrooms corresponding to their sex assigned at birth in public schools and government buildings. This law has been criticized for discriminating against transgender people.
“Don’t Say Gay” bill: A bill similar to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law has been proposed in Utah, but it has not yet been passed.
These are just a few examples of the many anti-LGBTQ bills that have been introduced or passed in recent years. These laws have a negative impact on the lives of LGBTQ people and their families, and they create a climate of fear and discrimination.
It is important to note that there is also opposition to these laws, and many people are working to protect the rights of LGBTQ people. LGBTQ rights groups, such as the Human Rights Campaign and GLAAD, are fighting these laws in court and advocating for pro-LGBTQ legislation. Additionally, many businesses and organizations have spoken out against anti-LGBTQ discrimination.
The fight for LGBTQ rights is ongoing, and it is important to stay informed and engaged in order to make progress towards equality.
Here are some additional resources that you may find helpful:
On Friday, Utah’s state House of Representatives distinguished itself by becoming the country’s first legislative body to pass an anti-trans bill in 2024.
It also happens to be dangerously extreme, by seeking to make it a criminal offense for people to use a bathroom in a public building that doesn’t correspond with the gender on their birth certificate. According to Erin Reed, who tracks anti-trans legislation nationwide, the law raises the prospect of people forced to “potentially undergo a genital examination if under criminal investigation for being in the bathroom.” People determined under the law to have used the wrong bathroom inside public spaces, from colleges to Salt Lake City’s airport, could be sent to jail for up to 6 months.
His little girl has “nothing to do with any of this weird stuff” being spouted by those who should be protecting her.
The bill, which would need to pass the state’s Senate and be approved by the governor to become law, is so extreme that Reed and others have said it could even ensnare cisgender people and subject them to prosecution if someone thinks they’re peeing in the wrong place.
As Chris Geidner writes at Law Dork, “It is extreme legislation that explicitly retrofits the crimes of voyeurism and criminal trespass in the state to allow for the prosecution of many transgender people for using the right bathroom.”
When pressed on the House floor, the bill’s sponsor could not point to a single example of inappropriate behavior by a trans person in an Utah bathroom. But members of the Utah House—which meets for only 45 days a year and just started its 2024 session on Tuesday—nonetheless voted 57 to 17 to police bathrooms.
That the obviously transphobic and culture war catering move was a top priority says a lot about the leadership of my home state, which is on its way to becoming an uninhabitable toxic wasteland unless its politicians can stop the Great Salt Lake from drying up. Historically, Utah’s Republican majority has claimed to want to get government off your back—except for when it wants to look down your pants. Indeed, Utah legislators have long seemed to have a rather prurient interest in residents’ private lives and private parts.
Take the not-so-long-ago time Utah installed a “porn czar” in its attorney general’s office. In 2001, the state hired an unmarried Mormon virgin to police the state for smut and combat “cyber-sex.” The Washington Post reported that in her first months on the job, the bureaucrat was called upon to intercept a Victoria’s Secret catalog from a family mailbox, bar nude mannequin displays in store windows, and purge local libraries of R-rated movies. In 2018, the state legislature overturned the law creating the post. “The whole thing was a public-relations nightmare and kind of made Utah the laughingstock of the nation,” Sen. Todd Weiler, a Republican cosponsor of the rollback bill, told the Salt Lake Tribune.
The bathroom bill is, of course, far more intrusive, and would have far more harmful and repressive impacts than the porn czar ever did. But the drive for invasive legislation that could literally see local cops checking people’s genitalia overlaps with the lawmakers’ longstanding and unhealthy interest in what goes on behind closed doors.
Black said the bill aims to answer “The defining question of this decade, ‘What is a woman?’”
“Indeed, this bill only serves to codify that which is already indisputable but has sadly been weaponized by a radical political movement intent on rewriting the laws of nature to fit their twisted agenda,” Black said in a news release.
While LGBTQ+ rights continue to gain traction across America, there are still those, including lawmakers, who aren’t in support. In Tennessee, a state representative is championing a bill through the Tennessee legislature to ban the display of Pride flags on state property. According to the rep, parents are interested in raising their kids with values “that were in existence at the time that our country was founded.”
The Republican State Rep. Gino Bulso first introduced House Bill 1605 in December 2023. It was interesting that amongst the values, Bulso did not include slavery, eradication of the indigenous population, and other values that existed when America was founded. Nonetheless, he believes families need values that existed during the nation’s founding years.
However, Bulso is not alone in his beliefs. Speaker of the U.S. House, Mike Johnson (R-LA), a Christian nationalist who believes that civic life and government should be based on the Bible. Bulso maintains that 18th-century values should guide Americans.
“Certainly, you know, 50 years ago, we had a consensus on what marriage is; we don’t have that anymore,” Bulso told WKRN in Nashville. “One hundred years ago, we had a consensus on sexual morality; I don’t think we have that anymore. So the values that I think most parents want their children exposed to are the ones that were in existence at the time that our country was founded.”
Utah’s Republican-controlled House voted Friday to pass a sweeping proposal to keep transgender people out of restrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity in taxpayer-funded buildings, sending the measure to the state’s majority GOP Senate for consideration just three days after the start of the session.
House Bill 257 aims to prohibit individuals from using gender-designated facilities that differ from their sex assigned at birth in government buildings, correctional facilities and domestic violence shelters unless they have undergone a transition-related surgery and legally amended the sex on their birth certificate.
The proposal would require new government buildings to include single-occupant restrooms and changing rooms while existing ones must be studied to assess “the feasibility of retrofitting or remodeling” facilities to improve privacy.
Utah House lawmakers voted 52-17 on Friday to pass the bill. Three Republicans joined all Democrats in voting against it.
The bill, if passed, would make Utah the third state to adopt explicit restrictions on transgender bathroom use in buildings other than schools. A Florida law passed last year prevents transgender people from using facilities consistent with their gender identity in all government-owned buildings, and a North Dakota law restricts bathroom use in correctional facilities.
As of January 18, GOP lawmakers have introduced 285 anti-LGBTQ bills, with a focus on restricting transgender rights and LGBTQ visibility.
The bills seek to ban drag performances, limit gender-affirming health care, and remove LGBTQ content from school libraries.
Most bills target the transgender community, aiming to redefine transgender existence in law or restrict self-identification and access to services.
“Transgender people across the country are enduring a historic and dangerous effort to control our bodies and our lives, fueled by extremist politics with the goal of erasing us from public life,” attorney Harper Seldin said.
“Taken together, these proposals are a blatant effort to deny transgender people the freedom to be ourselves at school, at work, and the support of the medical care many of us need to live.”
“In South Carolina, one bill would ban Medicaid coverage for gender affirming care up to the age of 26, expanding restrictions on care far into the adult age range,” transgender advocate Erin Reed said.
At least 200 bills focus on educational matters, while over 120 seek to restrict gender-affirming health care for minors.
Legal challenges have arisen from families and doctors due to restrictions on gender-affirming care.
The Human Rights Campaign anticipates a record number of anti-LGBTQ legislation in the upcoming state legislative sessions, including bills that deny legal recognition of transgender people and restrict LGBTQ visibility.
Related video: LGBTQ Rights Groups Want the UN to Investigate Texas (Dailymotion)
ithin the first week of Florida’s legislative session, which commenced recently, Republican lawmakers introduced several bills specifically targeting LGBTQ individuals, exceeding the count of days in the new year.
Some of the bills introduced in Florida during this legislative session are notably extreme. These include proposals to alter the state’s definition of sex and criminalize “lewd or lascivious grooming.” These measures stand out as among the most stringent of the hundreds filed in state legislatures nationwide.
Another bill suggests preventing government employees from being obligated to use pronouns requested by their colleagues. Additionally, a proposal aimed at shielding children from “harmful material” online. However, the vagueness of the term “harmful material” raises concerns among advocates, as it could potentially encompass LGBTQ content.
In a further development, a proposal from Republican state Sen. Jason Brodeur seeks to categorize almost all published accusations of anti-LGBTQ bias as “defamation per se.” This bill would prevent journalists from defending such accusations by referencing the subject’s “Constitutionally protected religious expression or beliefs” or scientific beliefs. Those liable in successful lawsuits under this proposal could face damages of at least $35,000.
“Florida has, for years, been an innovator of new assaults on freedom and equality, and this year’s slate of bills is no different,” remarked Brandon Wolf, a spokesperson for LGBTQ advocacy group the Human Rights Campaign, who is also a survivor of the Orlando, Florida, Pulse nightclub mass shooting.
Related video: LGBTQ Rights Groups Want the UN to Investigate Texas (Dailymotion)
He added, “This session, we’ll see escalating attacks on education, medical freedom, and the fundamental right of transgender people to exist as their authentic selves.” A proposed bill by Republican Rep. Dean Black mandates Floridians to sign an affidavit aligning their IDs with the sex on their original birth certificate.
Transgender individuals would be compelled to surrender existing IDs displaying their gender identity and would be unable to obtain such identification in the future. This measure poses significant hurdles for transgender individuals, impacting their access to identification reflecting their authentic gender identity.
Black’s bill mandates health insurance policies covering transition-related procedures, including “Treatment to detransition.” The proposed legislation requires coverage of conversion therapy in health insurance policies. Specifically, it calls for mental health services to address a person’s perception that their sex is inconsistent with their sex assigned at birth, affirming their birth sex.
The proposed bill further mandates any school district or state agency collecting vital statistics for anti-discrimination compliance or data purposes to identify the birth sex of individuals in the dataset. This provision could potentially limit data collection on transgender people.
The LGBTQ society has become a regular fixture in the modern day. But according to The American Civil Liberties Union, they have been getting a lot of legal bills. Backed into a corner, they now speak up, hopeful for public sympathy, which they used to get — until now.
This year, state legislators passed a record-breaking number of laws, and they all targeted LGBTQ privileges in the U.S. The ACLU said it noticed at least 508 bills impacting the community in 2023.
It also says that 84 of these bills are now laws. The rise in legislation clashed with an increase in threats of violence against the LGBTQ community.
The federal security agencies are sounding the alarm. However, activists say that despite the record-breaking wave of anti-LGBTQ bills, other lawmakers have stepped up to combat such efforts.
“We’ve also witnessed incredible moments of strength in states and communities across the country who have made sure this political assault does not go unnoticed or is made any easier for politicians opposed to our very existence,” said Gillian Branstetter, Communications Strategist at the ACLU, in a statement to ABC News.
The vast majority of legislation passed across the country has impacted gender-affirming care for minors, blocking trans youth from accessing treatments in some cases, including puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and surgeries.
Advocates tracking several bills they call ‘anti-LGBTQ’
These laws do not apply to such treatments in cases where the subject is a cisgender or intersex youth. The majority of those who support the law are against gender transitioning. They believe that it is harmful to youth and young adults.
The more lenient ones want patients to wait until they are older to make such decisions. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp is one such man. In March 2023, he signed a bill in his state banning doctors from starting hormone therapy for transgender youth under the age of 18. All “to ensure we protect the health and wellbeing of Georgia’s children.”
In September, a judge let the state enforce the ban after it faced a lawsuit. But there’s more where that came from.
At least 14 laws impacting the LGBTQ community are currently in the middle of legal battles. And if what Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO of LGBTQ media advocacy group GLAAD, said is true, it is just the beginning.
Ellis says, “The silver lining in this year of challenge is how LGBTQ people and our allies showed up for our community and everyone’s fundamental freedoms.”
Aside from Georgia, other states considered hostile towards the LGBTQ include Ohio and Wisconsin. Fortunately, several states have passed protection laws for the LGBTQ community. They include Minnesota, Michigan, New York, and California.
Atransgender “bathroom ban” in North Carolina caused a national uproar in 2016. Bruce Springsteen, Cyndi Lauper, Nick Jonas and a long list of other A-list performers canceled shows in the state. Global corporations Deutsche Bank and PayPal torpedoed plans to expand in Cary and Charlotte. The NCAA moved its scheduled championship games elsewhere.
Now, eight years later, after Utah passed a similar bill on Monday, the reaction beyond the state’s borders appears to be more of a shrug.
Neither of Utah’s largest businesses released statements in response to the legislation. Tens of thousands of out-of-towners, and an ensuing economic boost, were just heading home from the Sundance Film Festival, held annually in Park City. Global sensation — and queer icon — Bad Bunny is slated to headline a concert in Salt Lake City in upcoming weeks. Next month, Salt Lake City will be hosting first- and second-round games in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.
Representatives for the NCAA, Bad Bunny and Sundance did not immediately return requests for comment.
In fact, nine other states passed so-called transgender bathroom bills in the years between those passed by North Carolina and Utah, with little fanfare as well.
Allison Scott, who volunteered as an on-the-ground activist in North Carolina to fight HB 2, described this week’s lackluster reaction to Utah’s “bathroom bill” and the several others that have been passed in recent years as “very telling.”
“We were all saying that with HB 2: ‘It’s not over,’” said Scott, who is also the director of impact and innovation for the Campaign for Southern Equality, an LGBTQ advocacy group. “Now, here we are several years later and we’ve seen these bills grow and increase and grow and increase year over year over year, and we’re right back not only where we started but worse.”
While the enactment of the Utah law has immediate implications for the state’s trans community, the tepid response to its passage also reflects a broader retreat on transgender rights that less than a decade ago galvanized corporate America, elite sports and Hollywood.
Utah House Bill 257, which is titled “Sex-based Designations for Privacy, Anti-bullying and Women’s Opportunities,” limits transgender people’s access to bathrooms in public schools and government-operated buildings. These include restrooms at Salt Lake City International Airport, which is managed by local government, and in Utah’s public hospitals and universities. It also specifies the state’s legal definition of “male” and “female” is based on a person’s genitalia at birth rather than their gender identity.
The bill makes exceptions for trans people who have received genital surgery and changed their gender marker to match their gender identity on their birth certificates.
Critics of the legislation have said the law will create a “dangerous situation for trans youth.”
Supporters of the legislation have argued that without a measure in place, men posing as trans women will go into women’s public restrooms and commit sexual misconduct.
Rep. Kera Birkeland, who sponsored the Utah law, said that the bill was necessary to close a “giant loophole for predators” and will only criminally charge offenders who commit “an offense of lewdness,” as the bill states.
“If the people just go in and use the bathroom the way they’re supposed to be used, they will be fine. That has remained consistent throughout the bill, throughout any change,” Birkeland said in a phone call. “We’re not targeting just people who are transgender or people who are like, ‘I’m going to miss my flight, I’m going to duck into the men’s bathroom because the line is shorter.’”
She also pushed back on criticism that the bill would create an environment where Utahns are policing trans people in public restrooms, pointing to a provision in the bill that would criminally charge people for falsely reporting trans people in public restrooms.
“We do not want to incentivize any vigilante people out there trying to be jerks,” she said. “The whole goal is just to ensure that everyone feels like they have a safe place to do private things.”
Erin Reed, a transgender journalist and advocate, pushed back on this, arguing that the legislation will create disruption for trans people regardless of the bill’s specifics.
“People are not going to go through the fine points of a 12-page law,” Reed said. “More likely than not, you’re just going to see trans people and cis people challenged in bathrooms.”
Aside from Utah and North Carolina, lawmakers in nine other states have enacted similar legislation in recent years, including in Florida, Tennessee and Kentucky, according to a tally by The Associated Press. The measures largely restrict trans people’s access to restrooms solely in schools or in schools and government-operated buildings.
But North Carolina’s law, HB 2, went further, barring trans people from using restrooms and changing facilities that matched their gender identities in most public spaces.
HB 2 — which was later partially repealed in 2017 — also prevented local governments from passing LGBTQ nondiscrimination measures and rendered then-existing protections, including one in Charlotte, moot. For this reason, the law affected a much broader segment of the population compared to today’s bills and therefore drew national ire, said Shannon Gilreath, a professor at Wake Forest University’s School of Law and a faculty member of the university’s gender and sexuality program.
“When one’s own interests are not directly compromised by some form of discrimination, one is less likely to respond or to care,” Gilreath said. “I might not believe that’s necessarily the right attitude to have — to do what’s expedient versus to do what’s right in a situation — but that’s human nature.”
Some studies back Gilreath’s line of reasoning.
A survey from the nonpartisan research group Public Religion Research Institute conducted last year found an estimated 79% of Americans support anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people. Policies that largely favor trans Americans solely received significantly less support, the poll found. However, Americans who say they know at least one trans person are much more likely to support pro-trans policies, a 2022 survey from the Pew Research Center found.
Reed said that what’s changed from 2016 to now is that people — and even billion-dollar corporations — have become afraid of provoking the far-right.
She pointed to a group of conservative provocateurs who collectively have amassed tens of millions of social media followers in part by stoking outrage over LGBTQ issues. In several instances, threats of violence have followed the subjects of posts made or amplified by the group of right-wing influencers.
“These people are scary,” Reed said. “If the NBA All-Star Game threatened to pull a game right now? In this atmosphere? Today? They’d get bomb threats from conservatives.”
Last year, bomb threats were made to Budweiser factories across the country after trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney’s brand partnership with Bud Light created an online firestorm in pockets of right-wing social media. Target also pulled some of its LGBTQ-themed merchandise for Pride Month from its shelves last year after it said it received “threats impacting our team members’ sense of safety and wellbeing while at work.”
Reed also suggested that it might not be politically advantageous for Republicans to go against the grain when it comes to issues that affect trans people.
Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine faced political blowback after vetoing a bill that would ban gender-affirming care for minors in the state in December. Former President Donald Trump urged Ohio state lawmakers to override the veto, writing on his social media platform, Truth Social, that he was “finished” with the Republican governor. Ohio senators overrode the governor’s veto last week.
In recent weeks, local activists had been unsure whether Utah Gov. Spencer Cox would sign HB 257. Cox in 2022 vetoed legislation that aimed to limit transgender students’ ability to compete on girls sports teams in school, citing the disproportionate rate of suicidal ideation among trans kids.
Conservative lawmakers introduced more than 500 anti-LGBTQ bills in state legislatures across the country, according to a tally by the ACLU, with the majority of them targeting trans people. Seventy-five of those bills became law, including a ban on gender-affirming care for minors in Utah, which Cox signed into law.
Cox signed Utah’s “bathroom bill” on Monday evening with little fanfare and issued a short statement after weeks of speculation on his position.
“We want public facilities that are safe and accommodating for everyone and this bill increases privacy protections for all,” the statement read.
The law is effective immediately.
In addition to Utah, legislators in five states — South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Kansas and Iowa — have introduced their own “bathroom bills” or legislation that further expands “bathroom bills” already on the books, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Donald Trump Downplays Transgender Issues: ‘Very Small Number of People’
President-elect Donald Trump said transgender issues only affect a “very small number of people.”
Trump was named TIME Magazine‘s 2024 Person of the Year on Thursday. In his interview with the magazine, he said “the bathroom issue” only pertains to a small amount of people and it’s tearing the country apart. He also advocated for people to go “along with” the Supreme Court‘s rulings.
“I don’t want to get into the bathroom issue. In a study published by Statista in July, the organization found that around 7.6 percent of adults in the United States identified as a part of the LGBTQ+ community in 2023, which is more than double the numbers in 2012.
The study found that as of 2021, around 97.4 percent of people assigned female at birth still identified as such.
2022 survey data from Gallup, the Williams Institute and Pew Research suggests that between .5 and 1.6 percent of adults in the United States identify as transgender or nonbinary.
During his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump ran an advertisement focusing on transgender rights, famously saying “Kamala is for They/Them” and that “Donald Trump is for Us
Kamala even supports letting biological men compete against our girls in their sports,” the ad read. “Kamala is for they, them. President Trump is for you.”
Trump told TIME that “it’s true, Trump is for us.”
A spokesperson for Trump said that he has plans for Day 1 in office, which range from settling the Russian and Ukrainian war to removing protections for transgender students.
“I am a big believer in the Supreme Court, and I’m going to go by their rulings, and so far, I think their rulings have been rulings that people are going along with,” Trump said, “but we’re talking about a very small number of people, and we’re talking about it, and it gets massive coverage, and it’s not a lot of people.”
“We support gay marriage, and voted for the Respect for Marriage Act twice. However, if you think protecting women is discrimination, you are the problem,” Mace posted to X, formerly known as Twitter. “We don’t care if you’re trans, if you have balls we don’t want you in the women’s bathroom.”
The House sergeant-at-arms would reportedly be responsible for enforcing the ban, as Mace said in a few of her posts. A copy of the bill shared by Axios shows that bathrooms would be divided along the lines of “biological sex.”
Trump said in his interview with TIME that he does agree with McBride, suggesting the lawmakers should be focused on more important issues.
“I do agree with that,” Trump said. “On that—absolutely. As I was saying, it’s a small number of people.”
President Trump declared his intention to expand America into a new nation—a North American Empire that would include the United States, Canada, Mexico, Caribbean nations, Guam, Greenland, the Marianas Islands, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Cuba, and Central America, including Panama, Colombia, and Venezuela. He called for a new constitutional convention to ratify the formation of this new nation. He claimed this would create the largest economy and the largest country in the world, likening it to a modern Roman Empire.
The Empire would recognize three official languages—English, French, and Spanish.
The new nation would consist of 100 states, including the former United States, Washington D.C., Guam, Greenland, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, nine Canadian provinces, 15 Mexican states, five Central American states, Venezuela, and Caribbean nations and territories. New York would be divided into the NYC Metro State and Upstate New York. Chicago and Philadelphia would become city-states, splitting Pennsylvania into two states. California would be divided into six states, as would Texas, while Florida would be split into Miami City State and the rest of Florida. Additionally, there would be five American Indian states. The House of Representatives would expand to 1,000 members, and the Senate would include 100 new senators.
The Head of State would be the Emperor, elected for up to four four-year terms. There would be three legislative bodies: the House, the Senate, and the Governors’ National Assembly.
The federal government would have limited functions, with most governmental programs managed at the state level. Canada would be asked to expand its successful healthcare system throughout the new Empire.
The new Empire would allow free movement of people and capital across its territories. It would adopt a common immigration policy, foreign policy, and military, and join the UN as a successor state to the previously independent states.
The new Empire would have three official languages, English, French and Spanish. The New Empire would have Christianity as the state religion, but freedom of religion would be respected as would freedom of press, speech and assembly.
A new military draft would require public service for all individuals aged 18 to 21. After their service—whether in the military or as adjunct police and fire employees—participants would receive full college scholarships.
Military training and other on-the-job training would be converted into college credits, and all military certifications would be recognized across the Empire.
Trump’s speech was met with widespread support, leading to discussions that culminated in the Omaha Convention, which established the new Empire. The blue and red state divisions persisted under the Empire, but the Empire acknowledged these divisions. Red and blue states formed associations that lobbied the Imperial government through the new Governors’ Association.
Donald Trump was elected the First American Emperor and served two terms before stepping down.
April 29—The sense of an ending… End of Trump Reality TV Show?
trump jpg
While watching the Trump trials
I sense an ending
To the Trump Reality TV show.
As he is revealed to be
What he is
Nothing but a charlatan
A con man, a grifter.
And he is not the King
Not a dictator, and not a genius,
He seems to be just a tired old man
Finally being held accountable.
For decades of alleged misconduct
Fraudulent business and political
Crimes including inciting a riot.
Stealing national secrets
And so many over.
Yet the polls show
He could become our next President
Perhaps I am seeing the end
Of democracy playing out
On my TV screen?
Dear God, I pray
Make it all go way
Retire Trump from the game
take him now with you.
April 10 Long Live Emperor Donald the Ist
Ladies and Gentlemen
My fellow American citizens
Greetings and salutations
Today is a momentous day
The old corrupt USA republic is no more
The constitution that once protected us
Has been overthrown and violated
The barbarians at the gate
Have taken over
And ruined the once great land
The last hope of the world
And so, I had no choice
But to kill the old rotten regime
And restore American greatness
To save democracy
I must destroy it
And so, starting today
I will serve as the Emperor of North America
I welcome Canada and Mexico
And the Caribbean islands
To join The North American Empire
As we rebuild America
Restoring American greatness
And making us all proud again
Proud subjects of the New American Empire
May the Empire reign forever and a day
Triumphant against all enemies
And so, I take this burden
Sadly, but gladly
I will serve you
As your Empire
And my son Donald
Will serve as our second emperor
Once I pass from this world
His son will serve as the third emperor
And so on until the end of time
And we will reign in our new capitol city
Colorado Springs
Until the end of time
Washington will remain in our hearts
As the capitol of the old Republic
But the heirs of the Roman Empire
Need a new Imperial Capitol
And soon we will conquer Mars
And expand our Empire to the Starts
Long Live the Empire
Long Live America
Good night
And may God Bless
This great Empire
President Trump and the Seven Deadly Sins
President Trump
Has been hailed by some
As the messiah
Others have denounced him
As the “anti-Christ”
It is clear that his actions
And deeds exhibit
All the seven deadly sins
That the church preaches against.
How then can a true Christian
Overlook that and see this charlatan
As a “Godly” man?
That is the one thing
I just don’t understand
About Trump
Why are so many so-called Christians
Follow him as if a religious cult?
I mean it would be hard to find
A better poster child
For what a Christian should not be
How can any Christian follow
Such a vain, jealous, mean spirited, debauched character
Is beyond my understanding.
As I am not a Christian perhaps
It is a Christian thing I would not understand.
Emperor Trump Revises Gladiator Games
president trump
April 9 Pane e circus 2017 Redux
By order of his excellency
Emperor Donald the First
The merciful, the Christian King of Kings The Sultan of Sultans
The Emperor of North America
Be it hereby decreed
That the ancient honorable gladiator games
Of the old Roman Empire
Have been restored
Each city in the Empire will host a team
They will compete for the honor
Of the national championship
The games will start
With fighting animals
Fighting fish
Roosters
Cheetahs
Tiger
Bears
Wolves
And lions
Then a man lion contest
With a heretic thrown to the lions
If he or she lives
They will be pardoned
Then then main games
Six men/women teams compete
Armed with swords, knifes, mace, clubs
They fight until one man or women remains
The victor of the game
Those who are prisoners
Can compete for their freedom
And a full imperial pardon
Let the games begin
Long may the games reign
In the new North America Empire
Praise be to the Emperor
Donald the First
It Can’t Happen Here or Can It?
trump deaths
Every day when I watch TV
I see the chattering classes
The TV pundits
And their guests
Pontificate about this and that
And it seems to me
That they are missing the big picture
Nothing that they say
Will make a difference
Donald Trump has slowly conquered
The political world
And he is shaping it into something
That we had hoped we would never see
A truly American neo-fascist state
Wrapped around the flag
And so-called Christian values
And the latest made up outrage
And the chattering classes
Don’t seem to understand
That they are next
On the hit parade
As the Donald Trump machinery
Continues to take over the known universe
The question used to be
It can’t happen here
The answer I am afraid
Is already has
I asked Co-Pilot for background info on Trump’s desire to take over Canada, Panama and Greenland. Here’s his answer:
President Trump has expressed interest in acquiring Canada, Greenland, and the Panama Canal as part of what some are calling an “annexation agenda.” His motivations seem to include strategic and economic reasons, such as enhancing national security, countering China’s influence in the Western Hemisphere, and gaining access to valuable resources. For example, Greenland’s Arctic location and natural resources make it strategically appealing. Similarly, the Panama Canal is seen as a critical economic asset, and Trump has criticized its current management.
As for Canada, Trump has suggested using “economic force” to integrate it into the United States, citing trade deficits and national security concerns. However, these ideas have faced strong opposition from the leaders of these countries.
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I also asked C0-Pilot for a history of the gladiator games. Here’s his response:
Roman gladiator games were a cornerstone of Ancient Roman culture, blending entertainment, politics, and religion. They originated around the 3rd century BCE, evolving from funeral rites where bloodshed was believed to honor the dead. Over time, these games became grand spectacles held in massive arenas like the Colosseum, showcasing the might of the Roman Empire.
Gladiators, often slaves or prisoners, fought to the death in these contests, though some volunteered for fame and fortune. The games featured not only gladiatorial duels but also wild animal hunts, executions, and reenactments of historical battles.
The last known gladiator games were held on January 1, 404 CE. They were abolished by Emperor Honorius after the martyrdom of a Christian monk named Telemachus, who protested the violence and was killed by the crowd.
As the Trump administration continues its anti-woke, anti-DEI crusade. calls for canceling the observation of Black History and other special identity months have
proliferated. CO Pilot provides a useful summary of the state of play at the end of this article.
But first, I wanted to share a few of my “Black Lives Matter” poems, followed by a discussion/review of three documentaries on three black history pioneers from the Bay Area and some reflections on my Father’s (Curtis Cosmos Aller, Jr,) civil rights legacy.
University of Chicago? where’s that? Black/White America
There are two Americas
A black and white America
A mostly white middle-class, and upper class America
And a mostly black and brown lower-class America.
It has been this way
Since the beginning.
Most white Americans
Do not see the other America,
Almost invisible to them.
Most of the other America
Barely notices
Middle-class America
All around them.
This was vividly driven home
To me
Back in 1977.
I had gone to Chicago
To visit a friend
At the University of Chicago.
I made the mistake of taking the L train
back to the University
the L station was in Woodlawn
five long dangerous dark blocks away
I was the only white dude
on the train and street.
but in a whole different universe.
the University of Chicago stop
Is on the private commuter line.
Getting off, I asked five random people
Where was the University of Chicago?
The University of Chicago was
One of the most famous, prestigious universities
In the whole world.
But to the residents
Of the urban nightmare slum,
That was Woodlawn
back then,
The university could have been
The other side of the moon
for no one knew
exactly where it was.
Now I hear
It is a student and faculty housing
Neighborhood
Newly trending.
With most of the old residences
Long ago forced out
Due to ever-rising rents
And property taxes
As the University of Chicago
Spreads out colonizing
The nearby neighborhoods.
Most said University.
before pointing out,
it is over there somewhere.
They were nice enough
But wondering
How this strange white boy
Got lost
In their hood.
I am lucky
I was not mugged,
for my ignorance.
Just wrong place, wrong time
Sort of thing after all
A place where white boys
Feared to go.
Of course, back then,
I was a 6 2 230 pound white dude,
with wild crazed eyes
behind my glasses
I could be mobbed up
Or someone important
Or the child of someone powerful.
I just gave off that vibe
I supposed.
So, no one wanted
to mess with me.
When I got back,
Everyone was amazed
that I had survived
the five-block walk after dark.
Truth be told
That was a scary walk
after dark.
With lots of scary-looking dudes
With violence in their dark dead eyes
looking at me.
I said it was not too bad
But did not take the L train again.
During my trip to Chicago.
In the summer of 1977.
Three Bay Area Black History Pioneers
I wanted to highlight a couple of documentaries my high school friend Matt Jacobson was involved with that highlight four black history pioneers in the Bay Area.
Walter Gordon Story
Walter Gordon was a trailblazer in both sports and law. He was the first Black graduate of UC Berkeley’s Boalt Law School and had a distinguished career in law enforcement, civil rights, and prison reform. Gordon was also an All-American football player at UC Berkeley, making significant contributions to the field.
Gene Ransom, known as “The Dream,” was a prominent basketball player from Berkeley, California. He was a standout athlete at Berkeley High School (BHS) and later played for the University of California, Berkeley (Cal) from 1975 to 1978. Standing at 5’9″, Ransom was known for his exceptional skills and tenacity on the court. He was inducted into the California Athletics Hall of Fame in 2001. After his playing career, Ransom became a coach and mentor, working with youth through programs like Athletes United for Peace. He played at BHS while I was there. But, unfortuately, he died after a random road rage accident in 2022.
Gene Ransom, a former basketball star at the University of California, Berkeley, who was tragically killed in a shooting incident on Interstate 880 in Oakland, California, on February 4, 2022. The incident was believed to be a case of road rage, and a suspect was arrested and charged with murder1.
Gene Ransom was well-known in the Bay Area sports community and had a significant impact as a player and coach. He was involved in community work through organizations like Athletes United for Peace, aiming to provide healthy alternatives for youth caught up in street violence2.
It’s a heartbreaking loss for his family, friends, and the community. If you’d like to read more about it, you can find detailed articles on the incident. Former basketball great Gene Ransom, 65, is shot dead while driving on Oakland freeway: Suspected road rage gunman is arrested for violent crime plagues Bay Area The basketball star, 65, was killed while was driving north along Interstate 880 in Oakland around 5pm, the county’s fire department said
CHP responded to the scene after a witness called 911 when they saw Ransom’s car veering on the interstate, and believed the driver had a medical emergency
Officials later confirmed that Ransom had been struck by gunfire before crashing into the guardrail
He is the latest victims of gun violence in crime-ridden California, where shootings and violent crimes are on the rise. In 2020, California saw the largest jump in homicide deaths in the state history since 1960, with 500 more deaths reported than in 2019
Over the past year, Oakland experienced a 21percent increase in shooting incidents, the most since 2012
Former University of California at Berkley basketball legend Gene Ransom was killed as he was driving on a freeway during an apparent road-rage incident in the crime-ravaged Bay Area and the suspected gunman has been arrested. Ransom, 65, was found dead in his car after being shot, crashing into the media and coming to stop in the middle of Interstate 880 in Oakland around 5:15pm on Friday, the city’s Fire Department said.
California Highway Patrol (CHP) arrested 25-year-old Juan Angel Garcia of San Francisco on Saturday and charged him with murder. A friend said Ransom was driving to pick up his girlfriend at the West Oakland train when the shooting occurred. Ransom’s girlfriend ‘was waiting for him to pick her up and not knowing that he had been murdered,’ said Doug Harris, former teammate and long-time friend of Ransom.
CHP investigators said the motive appeared to be road rage and the shooting was targeted. They said Ransom was in a black Honda Civic and Garcia was traveling north on I-880 on a black Lexus.
Garcia allegedly pulled up on his Ransom’s left side and opened fire at least once.
Son of former Cal athlete killed in I-880 shooting remembers his dad who ‘showed love to everyone’
The California Highway Patrol announced an arrest on Friday’s I-880 freeway in Oakland which took the life of a Bay Area sports legend Gene Ransom.
OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) — The California Highway Patrol announced an arrest on Friday’s I-880 freeway in Oakland which took the life of a Bay Area sports legend Gene Ransom.
The CHP arrested 25 year-old Juan Angel Garcia of San Francisco charging him with murder. Authorities say a motive for the shooting is still under investigation.
“He was probably one of the biggest players to come out of Berkeley High,” said Doug Harris.
Harris is talking about his best friend, Gene Ransom, a star basketball player in the 1970s at Berkeley High School and Cal Berkeley who got a tryout with the Warriors.
“Not only a good friend to me but the entire Bay Area sports community,” said Harris.
His best friend is not only remembering Gene by his accolated, but by his heart.
Harris says Ransom was involved in “Athletes United for Peace,” a local nonprofit working to combat violence in Berkeley, Oakland and Richmond.
“The very thing we worked so hard to prevent for our young people, he has been a victim of, so this is really hard for me,” Harris added.
The California Highway Patrol announced an arrest on Friday’s I-880 freeway in Oakland which took the life of a Bay Area sports legend Gene Ransom.
‘Horrible loss’ friends say @CalMBBall Hall of Famer Gene Ransom was killed in Oakland I-880 freeway shooting on Friday. pic.twitter.com/l5iftF2Wm7
For decades Gene gave back to East Bay. Kevin McGlothlin knew him as “Coach Gene.”
“He is a community leader. He is a community icon,” said McGlothin.
Gene Ransom went back to Berkeley High to invest in young basketball talent. His students remember him as fierce competitor and an inspiring coach.
“He expected the best out of us. Our team coached our freshmen team. We were undefeated that year. He expected us to perform at a high level,” said McGlothin.
But for many, the lessons that will last a lifetime are the ones Gene taught off the court.
Families of Oakland freeway shooting victims are calling for action from elected officials to do something to stop the senseless violence on highways.
“My mom was killed senselessly and in 2007 he was there to support me through that. He showed up to the funeral and was definitely a big support during that time for me,” said McGlothin.
In the basketball world he was known as Gene “the dream” Ransom, but to Thaxter Ransom he was simply dad. In this statement his son said:
“My father was and still is a great man, he was a major influence in the East Bay Area community. He showed love to everyone he met and came across sometimes as a flirtation. That was him Gene ‘the dream’ Ransom. He opened the door for future basketball stars who came out of the Bay Area. He was looked up to and loved by many. I’ll never forget him and will always love him.”
A documentary produced by Doug Harris called Tournament of Champions; Legends of Northern California High School Basketball, features Ransom at playing the game Berkeley High School. He played three seasons for the Cal Men’s Basketball team, landing him a spot in the Cal Athletic Hall of Fame in 2001. Cal Athletics called him one of greatest players in the program’s history.
In a statement the department said:
“We are shocked to hear the reports that Cal Athletics Hall of Famer Gene Ransom has been identified as a victim in a deadly freeway shooting. Our thoughts are with gene’s family and friends for this tragic loss.”
William Byron Rumford was the first African American elected to a state public office in Northern California. He served as a California State Assemblyman from 1949 to 1967. Rumford was a pharmacist by profession and owned Rumford’s Pharmacy in Berkeley. He is best known for authoring the California Fair Housing Act (also known as the Rumford Act) in 1963, which aimed to end racial discrimination in housing. Despite facing significant opposition and the eventual repeal of the act by Proposition 14 in 1964, the Rumford Act was restored in 1966 and later reinforced by the U.S. Supreme Court. Prior to the Rumford Act, the East Bay was defacto segregated into a mostly white Hills and a mostly minority flats district, sadly that patten still continues to some extent.
Fair Legislation: The Byron Rumford Story” on YouTube: Fair Legislation: The Byron Rumford Story.
Commentary: My father, Curtis Cosmos Aller, Jr was a good friend of Bryon Rumford and I remember my father talking about him.
My father’s Civil Rights Involvement
My father was involved in some of the activities depicted in the documentary. He w as also put on a list of suspected communists during his time at the University of Washington in the 1940s when he led the succesful effort to integrate the University and then led the effort to allow Black students to live on campus in integrated dormitories. The FBI interviewed my father’s roommate and wanted to know if my father was a communist. My father’s roommate told the FBI to go f*** themselves, or words to that effect. I met my father’s roommate many years ago and he told me that story.
Several years later, during the Truman era, my mother was president of the Pacific Bell Telephone Workers’ Union. President Truman was going to San Francisco to meet union leaders, and the FBI interviewed my mother and asked her if she was a communist.
She told the FBI, “I don’t know where they find FBI Agents. I mean, you guys must be pretty dumb. If I were a communist, do you think I would tell you?”
She told them to f*** off and her parting words were, “Tell Harry that I don’t want to meet him unless he wants to meet me.”
They reported that to President Truman, and when they met, the San Francisco. the headline read, “Harry Meets Mary!” Has this occurred a few years before my time, maybe in 1951 or 1952?
My father was involved in anti-communist efforts during that time as the communists were very much part of the
civil rights movement and my father and others felt that the communists were exploiting Black people for their own nefarious reasons. In that sense, Walter
Gordon and my father were allied. I do not know if they ever met but I am sure they knew each other.
My father was a good friend of Governor Pat Brown and was a member of various state advisory boards in the late 50s and early 60s. He was also
friends with Judge Sweeney and others elected Black officials in the Bay Area.
That did not include Ron Dellums! They did not get along as my father was the best friend of the long-running Congressman from Berkeley that Dellums defeated in 1972, which led to my father running against Congressman Ron Dellums in 1974. In the movie, they mention a Dellems, and I wonder if that was Ron Dellums’ father or relative?
My father led the fight to desegregate the University of Washington in the 40’s. For that, he was listed as a possible communist by the CIA. Later my father set up the first Federal government Manpower training programs which had the goal of providing training to underrepresented groups including African Americans. He led the settlement of the SF student strike in 1969 which led to the founding of African American studies at SF State.
Co-Pilot provided background info:
Curtis Cosmos Aller Jr. He was a prominent figure in the educational and cooperative movements in the East Bay during the 1970s and 1980s. He served as the President of the Berkeley Co-op, a large consumer cooperative that played a significant role in the community by providing affordable goods and fostering a sense of collective ownership. His leadership helped maintain the Co-op’s operations during a time of political and economic challenges1.
Additionally, Curtis Cosmos Aller Jr. was the President of the Peralta Community Colleges in the East Bay, overseeing the administration and growth of the district’s educational institutions. His tenure contributed to the expansion and improvement of educational opportunities for the community.
The San Francisco State Student Strike of 1968-1969 was a significant event in the history of higher education in the United States. It was led by the Black Student Union (BSU) and the Third World Liberation Front (TWLF), a coalition of student organizations of color. The strike began on November 6, 1968, and lasted until March 21, 1969, making it the longest student strike in U.S. history.
The students demanded the establishment of an autonomous department for Ethnic Studies, increased representation of faculty and students of color, and more support for minority students. The strike was marked by daily rallies, marches, and confrontations with the administration1.
The strike ended with a significant victory for the students: the establishment of the first College of Ethnic Studies in the United States at San Francisco State University. This achievement paved the way for similar programs at other universities across the country3.
Ending Black History Month
The Pentagon announced it is no longer celebrating Black History month or other special observations. The Pentagon’s decision to stop celebrating Black History Month and other cultural awareness months was announced on January 31, 2025. You can read more about it in this article from Politico: Hegseth axes Pentagon ‘identity months’ the same day Trump calls for Black History Month observance.
As for other calls to quit observing Black History Month, there have been some discussions and actions taken by federal agencies to pause or cancel observances of various cultural and heritage months, including Black History Month. You can find more details in this article from NBC News: Federal agencies bar Black History Month and other ‘special observances’.
Pentagon cancels Black History Month hours before it starts
“Identity Months Dead at DoD,” reads the Jan. 31 Defense Department memo.
The day before the official start of Black History Month in the United States, the U.S. Department of Defense canceled and blocked any celebrations of it and other “identity months.”
The Jan. 31 release from new Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth declares “Identity Months Dead at DoD.” The directive from the secretary’s office argues that “[e]forts to divide the force – to put one group ahead of another – erode camaraderie and threaten mission execution.” Therefore it’s blocking any official commemoration or celebration of cultural awareness and heritage months such as Black History Month and Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
“Going forward, DoD Components and Military Departments will not use official resources, to include man-hours, to host celebrations or events related to cultural awareness months,” the new guidance says.
The guidance lists some examples of cultural awareness months, including “National African American/Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, National Hispanic Heritage Month, National Disability Employment Awareness Month, and National American Indian Heritage Month.” An updated release from the secretary’s office on Saturday, Feb. 1 added Pride Month to the list of banned heritage celebration months.
Military and civilian personnel “remain permitted to attend these events in an unofficial capacity outside of duty hours,” the guidance says, but cannot use on-the-clock hours or official resources.
Hegseth axes Pentagon ‘identity months’ the same day Trump calls for Black History Month observance
Identity months are officially dead during the Pentagon.
The Defense Department will no longer use “official resources, including man-hours” to celebrate “cultural awareness months,” according to guidance Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth issued Friday — on the eve of Black History Month, which began Saturday
The list of celebrations called out include National African American/Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Pride Month, National Hispanic Heritage Month, National Disability Employment Awareness Month and National American Indian Heritage Month.
“We are proud of our warriors and their history, but we will focus on the character of their service instead of their immutable characteristics,” the guidance says. It notes that service members and civilians may attend events “in an unofficial capacity outside of duty hours.”
Hegseth’s orders came the same day that President Donald Trump issued a proclamation calling for the recognition of Black History Month.
On Friday, Trump called “upon public officials, educators, librarians, and all the people of the United States to observe this month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.”
Asked Friday if agencies that had called off Black History Month activities should reinstate them in response to the proclamation, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters “the president is leading here at the White House.”
A Pentagon spokesperson declined to comment.
Federal agencies bar Black History Month and other ‘special observances’
A number of federal agencies have banned celebrations related to MLK Jr. Day, Women’s History Month and other such observances to comply with Trump’s executive orders.
WASHINGTON — Federal agencies on Friday rushed to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive orders aimed at curtailing diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
The executive orders prompted a flurry of memos and emails obtained by NBC News that modified the rules for staff at intelligence agencies, in the military and across civilian departments regarding employee resource groups and the celebration of cultural awareness events.
This week, the Defense Intelligence Agency ordered a pause of all activities and events related to Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Black History Month, Juneteenth, LGBTQ Pride Month, Holocaust Remembrance Day and other “special observances” to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive order, according to a memo obtained by NBC News.
The memo listed 11 observances that are now banned. It also said that all affinity groups and “employee networking groups” are immediately on pause.
The directive comes as the Trump administration has made it a top priority to go after any programs perceived to be related to promoting diversity, equity and inclusion in the federal government.
The DIA did not immediately return a request for comment.
U.S. intelligence agencies are also working to eliminate or suspend any activities that could be interpreted as supporting past DEI policies, multiple current and former officials said. The agencies are still trying to determine what activities or events will be prohibited, but officials are erring on the side of caution rather than risk failing to comply with the administration’s orders, the sources said.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which oversees the country’s intelligence services, recently issued written guidance to employees saying that DEI-related boards and working groups have been “curtailed” and that no official work time or workspaces should be used for DEI-related activities, according an excerpt from a memo obtained by NBC News. Future travel related to these activities also has been cancelled, the memo stated.
Pentagon leaders on Friday received a similar email mandating that, effective immediately, they may no longer dedicate official resources, including man-hours, to cultural awareness months.
Service members and civilians will still be permitted to attend these events in an unofficial capacity and outside of duty hours, the memo added.
As for the Central Intelligence Agency, a spokesperson said the agency is carrying out the executive order on scrapping DEI programs.
“CIA is complying with the Executive Order. We are laser-focused on our foreign intelligence mission,” a spokesperson said in an email.
Former intelligence officials said there was a risk that the administration’s moves to eliminate events marking Martin Luther King Day, the Holocaust or Americans’ ethnic heritage could prove counterproductive and discourage potential recruits from joining the intelligence services.
The CIA and other spy agencies for decades have sought to hire from a more diverse pool of talent to ensure the country has intelligence officers with language skills and cultural backgrounds that help improve intelligence gathering abroad.
“From an intelligence community perspective, I really think it could hurt our ability to do our job,” the former senior official said.
“We’re going to strangle off talent pipelines that were already narrow to begin with. And that’s going to deprive our intelligence community and our national security establishment of critical knowledge, talent, skills, language … that might be valuable in trying to get somebody into a foreign country,” the former official added.
On Friday afternoon, the Office of Personnel Management sent a memo, obtained by NBC News, ordering that all references to “gender ideology” be removed by 5 p.m. across the federal government.
The memo stated that this includes removing references from all public-facing websites and social media accounts, and specifically ordered the removal of Outlook prompts that directed staff to write out their pronouns.
In line with that new memo, State Department employees have also been instructed to remove all gender-identifying pronouns from their email signatures by 5 p.m. Friday.
“The Department of State is reviewing all agency programs, contracts, and grants that promote or inculcate gender ideology, and we are removing outward facing media that does the same,” the new Under Secretary for Management Ambassador Tibor P. Nagy wrote in an email — whose subject line was “Defending Women” — reviewed by NBC News. “Bureaus have already been alerted to review trainings, forms, and plans that involve gender ideology.”
Last week, the Justice Department sent a memo to staff announcing the closure of all of its DEI programs, saying, “These programs divided Americans by race, wasted taxpayer dollars, and resulted in shameful discrimination.”
The Pentagon memo on Friday barring the use of official resources for cultural awareness months echoed the same language, stating that “efforts to divide the force — to put one group ahead of another — erode camaraderie and threaten mission execution.”
Pentagon agency pauses MLK, Holocaust Remembrance, other celebrations
he Pentagon’s intelligence arm has issued a memo pausing any activities related to Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Juneteenth, Black History Month, LBGTQ+ Pride Month and Holocaust Remembrance Day, among other “special observances,” according to a defense official who confirmed the authenticity of the memo.
Mr. Trump has emphasized ending recognition of DEI issues and observances as a key part of his agenda, and he suggested Thursday that DEI may bear some blame for the deadly collision between a commercial plane and a Black Hawk helicopter earlier this week, though when asked what evidence he’d seen to support the claim, he responded, “It just could have been. We have a high standard.”
Parts of the Pentagon have tried to comply with the executive order ahead of a formal directive from the Defense Department.
Last weekend, the Air Force revised a course in basic military training related to diversity that also included videos of the Tuskegee Airmen and Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs). The brief removal of the videos prompted a backlash when the videos were briefly removed from training to review the course.
Lt. Gen. Brian S. Robinson, Air Education and Training Command commander, said in a statement after the review that the course had been revised to focus “on the documented historic legacy and decorated valor with which these units and Airmen fought for our Nation in World War II and beyond.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in his first week on the job established a “Restoring America’s Fighting Force Task Force” to focus on rooting out DEI efforts in the Pentagon. In a memo, he directed the task force to present an initial report in March.
In 1976, President Gerald R. Ford recognized Black History Month. Ten years later, President Ronald Reagan issued Proclamation 5443, recognizing National Black (Afro-American) History Month. In 2025, just after a hellish, chaotic month, at Donald’s urging, the Defense Department’s intelligence agency has paused observances of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Pride Month, Women’s History Month, Holocaust Days of Remembrance, Juneteenth, and other cultural or historical annual events in response to the president’s ban on DEI programs in the federal workplace.
Federal agencies have struggled to interpret Trump’s Jan. 20 executive order ending DEI programs across the government and have taken a broad approach due to lack of clearer guidance from the White House on how to comply.
On Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth directed staff to create a DEI task force to ensure no DEI programs remain in the Pentagon.
“We’re not joking around,” Hegseth said in an interview Wednesday with Fox News. “There’s no changing of games or softly manipulating something. DEI is gone.”
If DEI “is gone,” then explain those two aircraft disasters this week, Pete. I thought you all said that DEI caused them.
Happy Black History Month, y’all. Well, not you, Clarence Thomas.
I applaud you for agreeing to chair the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), but I am afraid that you are off to the wrong start, and DOGE recommendations will likely go nowhere.
Here is my recommendation on how to conduct this very important, long-overdue review of the US federal government’s budget and employment levels:
First, set up ten subject matter blue ribbon panels that will be empowered to do the bulk of the review, with DOGE headquarters staff serving in a coordinator role to ensure that the reviews are completed in time and are comprehensive worldwide reviews with actionable proposals for legislative and executive actions.
The panels will be selected with the advice and consent of the House and the Senate, with 10 members appointed by Republicans or Democrats and one nonpartisan member. Each panel will have at least four women members, three minority members, one LGBTQ member, and two international members. Their commissions will conduct their work in public and televised hearings, primarily in English, but will post their final recommendations in multiple languages on the website.
Schedule:
Begin May 1, 2025: Selection of the Commissioners.
June 1, 2025: Selection of staff members, all with interim TS/CSI Clearances.
July 1, 2025: Web page, commission work schedule, and policies set up.
July 1 – August 2025: Conduct a comprehensive world review of the subject in multiple languages and make prior recommendations using the latest AI research tools. Use that review to guide the rest of the work of the commission.
August 1 to September 30 Send questionnaires to selected government employees federal labor unions, retired employees, university experts, and media following the work of the agencies and agency heads with follow-up interviews soliciting their input and suggestions as to how to cut waste and operate their agencies more efficiently and effectively.
October 2025: The Commission will conduct public hearings in the United States and internationally, talking to academicians, and world leaders in their respective fields.
November 2025: Publish initial findings, including research findings with links to prior reports, media coverage, recommendations, and specific actionable executive and legislative proposals, with budgetary implications spelled out.
December 1, 2025 – January 1, 2026: Public comment period.
April 1, 2026: Release the final report online, considering public comments received, and in multiple languages to the President, OMB, House and Senate committees, and international organizations such as the UN, World Bank, IMF, major universities, think tanks, the media, and foreign missions.
July 1, 2026: Send recommended legislative proposals to the US Congress, international organizations, think tanks, universities, experts consulted, the media, the UN, mayors of major metro areas, and governors of the 50 states.
August 2026: Congress will hold hearings and enact relevant legislation.
September 2026: Legislation enacted and sent to the President prior to the beginning of the fiscal year.
December 31, 2026: The revised fiscal year begins, coinciding with the calendar year being merged into the fiscal year, which will be a major recommendation of the commission, considering the budget for the next two years prior by Congress.
January 2026: Congress begins annual oversight hearings and requests for supplemental budget requests.
April 2026: DOGE commissions report their first action report, after considering public comments received.
July 2026 – September 2026: Congress considers additional legislative proposals presented by the DOGE commissioners.
April 2027: Second follow-up action report after considering public comments received.
July 2027: Congress considers additional legislative proposals.
Starting in 2028: The DOGE commissions will conduct independent oversight hearings every Spring (in light of the new two-year budget cycle) with recommended legislative and executive actions.
The commissions will look in detail at the following programs and policies of the Federal Government, considering best practices around the world, and in the States as well, as prior commission recommendations.
Federal Budget Process
Reform the Federal Budget Process
Reform the tax code every year
Expand the number of States and the number of Senators and Representatives
Consolidation of Government Agencies -Reforming Immigration Policy by Creating a New Department of
Immigration and Consular Affairs,
Expand US Government Support for International Trade by Creating a New Cabinet Department of International Trade
DOD Savings
Set up two three Federal Service academies following the military service academies – one focused on intelligence and diplomacy, public health and science, law enforcement
Consolidate Intelligence Agencies into the CIA
Merge National Forest Land and BLM Lands,
Eliminate the BLM, turning that land back to the States.
Merge National Monuments into the National Park Service
International Relations
The War in Ukraine and a Durable Peace: Ending the War in the Mideast and Establishing a Durable Peace.
Work towards ending Islamic terrorism,
Engage the Taliban
Address the North Korean nuclear threat and work towards the reunification of the Koreas.
Offer the Iranians a grand bargain
With the decline in terrorism expanding the Peace Corps Reform NATO and other military alliances in light of the resolution of the
Ukraine war.
Restructuring the Military:
Educational Reforms
Review the Department of Education:
Expanding Apprenticeship Programs:
Public Health: including Fully funding Operation Moon Shotto eliminate cancer by 2035, fully funding comprehensive COVID vaccination that will vaccinate against the common cold, pneumonia, and the flu in annual vaccinationsDeveloping and Deploy an STD/HIV vaccine, Developing and deploying a Malaria/Yellow Fever, Dengue, and Zinka vaccination,
Climate Change and Energy Policy
Expand high-speed trains and transit systems using the latest technology making intracity train travel the majority of inter-city travel reserving airline travel for lost distance flights only expand urban mobility helicopter transit systems to help reduce traffic.
Build more housing, especially multi-family apartments, and group housing bringing back boarding houses and corporate and government-provided dormitories
Agriculture
Reform but not Eliminate Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Government Support for the Arts
Expand NASA’s Mandate to include setting up lunar and Mars colonies by 2040, and developing interstellar travel by 2024
More detailed proposals follow;
Reform the Federal Budget Process
Reform the budget process to end automatic CRs and government shutdowns and eliminate the debt ceiling limit. The USG faces a fiscal cliff. To address this, the government must become more efficient, generate new revenue, and reduce non-essential spending starting with DOD.
Shift to a two-year budget cycle, with the first year of a new congress reserved for passing the budget, and the second year of the congress devoted to oversight and supplemental budget requests. The budgets will include an automatic increase in the budget set at the federal COLA
Reform the Tax Code Every Year
The tax code must be simplified and reviewed annually as part of the budget review process. Most deductions will be eliminated keeping only mortgage interest, credit card interest, SALT taxes paid, business travel, charitable giving, medical and educational expenses. The minimum tax rules will be re-imposed. Both personal and corporate tax rates will be set at 5 percent, 10 percent, and 15 percent with 5 percent being the minimum tax collected from all taxpayers, and more people will be required to file and pay taxes. Overseas filters will only pay taxes after reaching 250,000 annual income after deductions including foreign taxes . Tariffs should be increased with revenues going to reduce the federal government debt. A five percent VAT could also be introduced.
In general, the Federal government should pay for day-to-day operations out of tax revenues reserving borrowing for high-value items such as major defense spending, NASA spending, and infrastructure spending.
Expand the number of States and the number of Senators and Representatives
Create up to 80 new states by converting territories and DC to states and dividing mega-states like California, Florida, Illinois New York, and Texas, creating city-states like NYC, LA, and Chicago uniting cities and their suburbs, and creating five native American states, and looking at extending Statehood to American territorial possessions and DC.
The new states would be consist of:
Splitting Californiainto seven new states,
Northwest Coast, Jefferson (Northeast California, Southern and Eastern Oregon, and Eastern Washington capitol Spokane) Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley, Delta, Davis-Tahoe region, San Francisco Bay Area including Monterrey and Santa Cruz, Central Coast, LA and San Diego including TJ and Baja California and Eastern California desert region.
Spliting New York state into New York City and its Suburbs, and the rest of New York becoming its own state.
Splitting Illinois into Chicago and its suburbs and downstate Illinois,
Splitting Texas into five city-states – Austin/Hill country, Dallas/Ft Worth, Houston, San Antonio, and El Paso each with hinterlands attached,
Splitting Florida into Northern, Central Florida Southern Florida Miami City State
Create new Mega City States in biggest metro areas
Philadelphia/Baltimore city state including Atlantic City,
Washington DC city-state called Colombia combining DC, Northern Virginia, Western Virginia, and Maryland suburbs down to Fredericksburg.
Create new City States of Denver/Boulder, Detroit, Seattle/Tacoma and New Orleans and Baton Rouge.,
Create Indian States, consisting of Alaskan native state, Navaho Reservation, Eastern Oklahoma, Yakima Reservation, Blackfoot in Idaho, Iroquis in New York, and Sioux Reservation in North and South Dakota.
Each federally recognized tribe will be affiliated with the nearest Native State, be allowed to move to the Native State and receive a stipend from Indian Gambling and other state-run businesses, and be federal government income tax-free,
Extend statehood to Guam, Micronesia, PR, Samoa, and VI.
Expand the House and the Senate and create new council of governors as new legislative branch.
The House of Representatives will be expanded to 600 members and the Senate to 160 new members, and a new third legislative body called the Council of the States consisting of governors and vice governors will meet once a month virtually and once a year to review and approve major Federal legislation that affects the states. The number of representatives will be adjusted every ten years to reflect increased populations.
Convene a Constitutional Convention to enshrine changes into the new Constitution including the new states, the expanded congress, and the new council of governors super-legislature.
Reforming Immigration Policy by Creating a New Department of Immigration and Consular Affairs
Merge the Consular Affairs Bureau, DHS CIS, ICE, and Department of Labor certification programs into a new cabinet-level agency. Most employees will work at the Kentucky Consular Center, immigration service centers, passport offices, or ports of entry, spending 40% of their time overseas. Only senior staff will remain in DC. All staff will be Foreign Service officers, undergoing one year of training, followed by two domestic and two overseas assignments.
Routine NIVs will be processed via ETA, with most countries part of the VWP. Overseas positions will have
three to five line officers and a section chief. There will be four divisions: NIV, immigration visa processing,
fraud detection, and consular protection services.
Entry to the Department of State, Immigration and Consular Affairs, and DHS will require graduate degrees and overseas experience. Credit will be given for military or Peace Corps service. Officers will start at FS level 05, serve three years of probation, and be promoted to 03 upon tenure.
They will serve ten-year terms with reviews every ten years. Retirement will be aged 60, with optional service to age 70. The maximum entry age will be 30. Adjust immigration enforcement and deportation to fit the newly established legal immigration framework.
Expand US Government Support for International Trade by Creating a New Cabinet Department of International Trade
Merge offices within Commerce, State, DOL, and other agencies. Expand the number of foreign commercial and agricultural officers, requiring the same entry criteria as State Department and the new Immigration Consular Services. This will also include setting up a national tourism board with offices in every state and major cities, and in embassies overseas to promote tourism to the U.S. and oversee participation in international expos and sporting events.
DOD Savings
Private Commissary, PX, golf courses, bowling alleys, and other support services. Consolidate all military air services into the Air Force. Privatize military lodging and turn over base schools to local districts, keeping DOD schools overseas.
There is no rational reason why DOD should be operating the eighth-largest grocery chain in the world. Walmart or Target could operate it much more efficently. They could provide discounts for active duty personnel based on rank, and shopping would be tax free.
The same applies to domestic DOD schools; they should be turned over to the local school district. The same goes for base libraries; they should also be turned over to the local library system, with a branch library on base. The military lodging facilities should be contracted as well.
On-base dining should also be contracted out. Recreational facilities should also be contracted out to local government parks and recreation except for bases located overseas. Overseas schools, libraries, and recreational facilities should be run by DOD except where it is practical to have local governments manage them on a contract basis. Certainly,
Costco, Walmart or Target could and should operate international commissaries and PX services. All of these services could and should be privatized, saving the government money without harming national security.
Move the Coast Guard to DOD
Set up two three Federal Service academies following the military service academies – one focused on intelligence and diplomacy, public health and science and law enforcement
Consolidate Intelligence Agencies into the CIA
Merge National Forest Land and BLM Lands,
Eliminate the BLM, turning that land back to the States.
Merge National Monuments into the National Park Service
International Relations
The War in Ukraine and a Durable Peace: Address the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and work towards a sustainable peace agreement.
Ending the War in the Mideast and Establishing a Durable Peace:
Focus on creating a true two-state solution, including a land swap allowing for a land bridge from Gaza along the southern border to Palestine and the creation of a Trans-ordan Federation with its capital in Jerusalem. Expand the Abraham Accords to include additional Middle Eastern countries.
Work towards ending Islamic terrorism,
Engage the Taliban to bring them back into the international community, and end their horrific treatment of women.
Address the North Korean nuclear threat and work towards the reunification of the Koreas.
Offer the Iranians a grand bargain reestablishing diplomatic relations and expanding people-to-people exchanges including the Peace Corps
With the decline in terrorism expand the Peace Corps to include Afghanistan, India, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Pakistan, United Korea, (North Korea and rural South Korea) Sudan, Somalia, Syria and Yemen.
Reform NATO and other military alliances in light of the resolution of the Ukraine war.
Military Relations
Restructuring the Military:
Consider whether to extend the draft and expand the GI Bill. Explore the possibility of requiring public service in exchange for military
service, move the Coast Guard back to DOD.
Educational Reforms
Review the Department of Education: Decide whether to extend or revamp the department. Reform secondary and tertiary
education, considering the impact of AI on the education system and addressing the implications of the demographic cliff facing colleges.
Answer the question of how many colleges and Universities the United States needs and what the basic basic structure of university education should be. The basic goal is to ensure that students have options to enter into training programs rather than college. Expand opportunities for employment in government and elsewhere for non-college educated. Expand the GI bill, providing college and vocational training tuition in return for public service in the military or government sector. Make college tuition free. Reduce the burden of student debt by forgiving student debt for public sector service..
Expanding Apprenticeship Programs: Develop training programs and expand nationwide military and other training certificate programs, including nationwide recognition of such certificates as military EMT certification..
Public Health: Define the role of the US government in promoting public health and its involvement in the WHO and other international health agencies including Fully fund Operation Moon Shot to eliminate cancer by 2035, fully fund comprehensive COVID vaccination that will vaccinate against the common cold, pneumonia, and the flu in annual vaccinations which should be fully paid for in insurance programs, Develop and deploy an STD/HIV vaccine, Develop and deploy a Malaria/Yellow Fever, Dengue, and Zinka vaccination, along with biological eradication programs targeting those disease-bearing mosquitos, with the goal being the complete elimination of mosquito and insect diseases by 2030…
Climate Change and Energy Policy
US Government’s Response to Climate Change: Determine the appropriate response and how to encourage countries like China to engage fully in climate change initiatives.
Expand high-speed trains and transit systems using the latest technology making intracity train travel the majority of inter-city travel reserving airline travel for lost distance flights only expand urban mobility helicopter transit systems to help reduce traffic.
Build more housing, especially multi-family apartments, and group housing bringing back boarding houses and corporate and government-provided dormitories
Agriculture
Promotion of Insect Agriculture: Explore and promote insect agriculture, and other sustainable agricultural production in light of widespread climate change and populatation growth.
NASA
Give NASA a new mandate – and appropriate budget bump up -setting up sustainable lunar, space, and Martian colonies by 2040. And develop true interstellar spaceships by 2040 and set up colonies on the Jupiter and Saturn moons and Alpha Centura by 2050. The AI-driven review will look at how to develop interstellar travel capabilities and colonies on the Moon, Mars Jupiter, and Saturn moons by 2040, and Alpha Centura by 2050 reviewing the vast Sci-Fi literature on these topics focusing on what is most feasible given today’s technologies and making recommendations on future research topics…
These points aim to address key international relations issues, military restructuring, educational reforms, public health promotion, climate change response, and agricultural innovation. By focusing on these areas, the United States can work towards solving pressing problems and creating a better future for all.
Sincerely,
John (Jake) Cosmos Aller
Retired U.S. State of State Foreign Service Officer
these are entirely my opinions and do not reflect the views of my prior employers.
for more information, please consult the following background information supplied by Co-Pilot
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: This article discusses how some progressive lawmakers are intrigued by the potential for Pentagon cuts and other reforms proposed by the DOGE initiative.
: This article critiques the DOGE initiative as a continuation of traditional GOP austerity measures, focusing on entitlement reform and spending cuts.
: This article covers Bill Gates’ support for Elon Musk’s cost-cutting plans, highlighting international perspectives on government efficiency and spending.
Here are my thoughts on the various new religions in the world today. First, a quick review of my evolving religious view point.
In my 69 years on this earth, I have learned a few things, because I have seen a few things. I grew up in a very secular town, in a very secular era. The late 60s in Berkeley was a time when everything was being challenged, questioned, and debated, and the issue of God came up frequently. Was God still relevant in this modern era?
Most of my friends were agnostic at best, don’t recall having any Christian friends, Most were Jewish though and one was a Mormon. Most were white, but I had a few black friends as well, a few of them were Christian.
My mother was born a Southern Baptist, she was kicked out of church for asking the forbidden question, “If God created the universe, who created God?” the preacher was not amused and kicked her out for being a “free thinker” which to a Baptist was a very bad thing indeed, especially in Arkansas in the late 30s.
My father was a devoted atheist, grew up in Yakima in a Methodist family, but just did not see God anywhere. An economist believed in economic laws were materialistic and deterministic, God simply did not compute for him. They told us it was up to us to determine what to believe because they disagreed. But in the end, it came down to this, “Do the right thing” but it was up to us to determine what that might be.
I went to a few church services, but it just did not stick, did not get the whole shebang, did not believe in the Virgin Mary, the crucifixion, and other Christian dogma felt it was all just an ancient, irrelevant fairy tales. I shared my father’s materialistic worldview and my mother’s skepticism regarding Church teachings. She was pleased though when I told her I had started reading the Bible.
For a while, I became a militant atheist, hung out at a, debating with Holly Hubert and the street preachers who were there. I shocked the Christian fanatics, shocking them with my atheist stand-up comedy routines.
One day Jehovah’s witness came to my house. I told them I would love to talk with them, but I was late for a Satanist meeting and invited them to join me. They fled in terror.
Later in college, I had a roommate, who took too much acid and became convinced he was God. We spend many nights smoking weed and debating the existence or non-existence of God. He had grown up as a Jehovah’s Witness. His parents blamed us for their son’s descent into madness and promised to pray for us but said we would go to hell for the sin of questioning God’s will.
In college, I took a course on modern religions. As a sociology student, I studied the Unification church’s recruitment practices and went to their recruitment dinner, but wisely did not go to their weekend retreat, otherwise, perhaps I might have been converted and become a Moonie.
I even went to a Scientology center and took their free personality test and concluded it was all a scam. Liked to hang out with Hari Krishna dudes joining them for public chanting.
Started reading the bible in my world religion class but took me almost 30 years before I finished reading the bible, and all the other spiritual texts, on the eve of my 50th year. Started with the Book of Mormon and ended with the Koran after reading the Buddhist writings, the Hindu scriptures, the Confucian classics, and the Tao De Ching.
Had to finally skip over the entire genesis begat stories, saying to myself
‘What’s the point?’
Concluding the bible was badly edited. Just a collection of fairy tales, not fit for the modern world, but revelations fascinated me.
When I went to Korea in the Peace Corps, I became fascinated by the subtle interplay between traditional Buddhism, shamanism, neo-Confucianism principles, And the resurgence of aggressive Christianity, and the new religious fervor of Reverend Moon, the unification church, and other new religions.
Spend some time at Buddhist temples, even spend a few nights hanging out with the monks decades before the formal temple stay programs became popular among foreign tourists.
I had an encounter with shamanism when my uncle-in-law died, they did a shaman “kut” ritual. the shaman a female channeled his spirit. He came to the room, berated us all, cursed us all from his perch in hell, That was such a freaky experience We had to flee the demented scene.
I had a few mystical experiences, once in college, I saw God in a lake, But that was probably just the magic of the magic mushrooms, doing its mushroom thing.
Once while I was hanging out in Berkeley, I encountered a cosmic cat, I saw the divine spark In his eyes, as he followed me everywhere. I told my mother who was suffering from Alzheimer’s about the cosmic cat, she concurred he was indeed a cosmic cat.
Later in Goa, I encountered a cosmic dog who followed me everywhere. I asked the cosmic dog once
“Say, Cosmic dog, are you god? Bark once if yes, two if no.”
He barked once.
“Are you Allah? Bark once if yes, two if no.”
He barked once.
Are you your buddha? Bark once if yes, two if no”
He barked once.
“Are you the great spirit of the American Indians? Bark once if yes, two if no”
He barked once.
Are you Satan? Bark once if yes, two if no.”
He growled at me and I knew I had gone too far.
When I was in Thailand, I continued my exploration of Buddhism visiting most of the famous Buddhist sites there, later in Taiwan, Vietnam, and India as well.
When I lived in India became immersed in the spiritual energy all around me, I became a fan of the big Ganesh, he removed spiritual obstacles, allowing me to connect to the divine spirit all around me. I felt that cosmic vibe, just flowing through the world.
While in India, I attended a few Catholic services, other Christian services, went to Hindu temples, Jain temples, Sikh temples, and even a few Muslim pilmagame sites. I also fasted during Ramadan and went vegan to observe lent.
Now that I am an old man, I think back on what I have learned from my spiritual journeys. I think I can sum it up as follows:
I believe that the universe is alive, and I am part of the divine mind, the universe God if you would, flows through us all. If only we have the eyes, to see the divine all around us.
The Christian faith, like all other faiths, is just an attempt to discover the God of the universe. It is all the same path we are on, trying to connect to the cosmic overmind of the universe.
Whether you are an atheist, a Buddhist, a Christian, a Jain, a Jew, a Harri Krishna, a humanist, a Hindu, a Moonie, a Mormon, a Muslim, a Pagan or a Wiccan devote, we are all cosmic fools, seekers of the truth. The truth is out there for us to discover it for ourselves.
But in the end, it comes down to this simple principle, we have to decide to do the right thing, but that is a decision, only we can make deep in our soul.
Whether heaven or hell is awaiting us I do not know. Whether Jesus is the son of God I do not know. Whether Mohammed was the last prophet of God I do not know. Whether Allah is waiting for me, I do not know. Whether the grim reaper will be coming for me I do not know.
But I am ready for the final stage of my life. In the end, I also know this: I knew my wife in a prior life, and I will see her in my next life. That is the operation of fate, karma, and reincarnation, which I do believe in. The adage, what goes around comes around is a simple basic fact of the universe.
That is all that I know for sure. That is what I believe. In the end, always
“Do the right thing,”
and the rest will follow.
Meeting God in a Lake
god
In my 64 years around the sun
I encountered God four times
At least I thought it was God
But could never be sure
The first time I met God
I had taken magic mushrooms
And had gone to a lake
And soon was tripping inside my head
Lost in inner space
Zoning out tuning in
Dropping down the proverbial rabbit hole
And then in the middle of my madness
I felt oneness with the universe
My body melted away
And I joined the universe
All boundaries dropped away
And I knew that the universe was alive
and I was part of the Cosmos
And the Cosmos was part of me
And I wondered at that moment
If I was face to face with God
I asked God to reveal himself to me
And nothing happened
Just laughter as the whole universe
Burst into laughter
And the madness began to fade
And I slowly came down from the high
And became aware of myself
And I was no longer one
With the universe
I felt profoundly moved by the experience
Felt that I had achieved perhaps nirvana
Or felt the presence of God
The feeling faded over time
And my quest to find God resumed
But I knew that I would never again
Come so close to the divine essence
Of the very Universe
Cosmic Cat from Berkeley
evil cat
I next encountered the divine
Many years later in Berkeley, California
I had gone home to be with my Mother
While taking leave from my job
in the Foreign Service
I had two weeks there by myself
My wife came later
near the end of the trip
every morning I woke up
had coffee
Did yoga
Spoke to my mother
Who was sliding into dementia
Day by day losing her reason
Then I would go out
And explore the city
Go to a museum
Go to one neighborhood
And just be there
Rediscovering the Bay area
After years of being away
Having dinner with old friends
Seeing movies etc
Every morning a black cat came to visit
The cat was friendly and waited for me
And then would join me in my morning rambles
Following me to the bus stop
I started talking to the black cat
He looked at me with the spark of divinity
In his dark eyes
I called him the cosmic cat
He seemed to like that
He would look at me
And I opened up to me
Told the cat all my dark secrets
As I walked the streets
Of the old neighborhood
Every morning and every evening the cat
Would be there to greet me
And to carry on our endless conversations
Then I had to leave
And in our final conversation
I asked the cosmic cat
Say, Cat are you just a cat
Or are you a demonic cat
Are you possessed by God
Or by Satan
The cat looked at me
And I realized that God
Was indeed residing in the cat
But that god was residing everywhere
All I had to do was open my mind
And the rest would follow
So I said Goodbye to the cosmic cat
And he purred and came up to me
And I felt the comforting presence of the Divine
As I said goodbye to the cosmic cat
And said goodbye to my mother
As this was the last time
That we would be able to really talk
I told my mother about the cosmic cat
She smiled and said that the cat
was there for me and her
to comfort us both in our hour of need
and that the cat
was indeed a cosmic cat
bombay pictures
Five years later
After I had last talked to God
In the form of the cosmic cat
Who I hung out with in Berkeley
I found myself in Bombay, India
Where I was involved with another women
And contemplating whether to leave my wife
For the promised excitement of the other women
I did not know what to do
So I went to Church
And on the way home
I stopped on the side of the road
And prayed to God
to provide me a sign
What should I do
I asked God
And then I felt it again
God seemed to be everywhere
And nowhere
And I found myself down
the rabbit hole again
I had a vision of an old man
Sitting by the side of a bed
Looking at an old women
And realized that
I was seeing the future
And the women
in my vision was my wife
And then I knew the answer
that God was giving me
I had to find my way
Back to my wife
And rekindle the love
that we shared
I looked up
and saw my wife’s face
In the sky
I went home and wrote
A long poem for my wife
She was in the military
And in Korea
And I was with the State Department
Stationed in Mumbai, India
And I called her up
And began talking to her
For the first time
In a long time
And I told her what was on my mind
And told her that we had to decide
Would we continue as a couple
Or would we continue to drift apart
Somehow I finished the conversation
And fell asleep with the peace and contentment
Of God’s presence filling my heart and soul
The feeling of being connected with God
Faded over the time
But the conviction that God had spoken to me
Never really left me
I asked God
whether God was the God of Jesus
Or Allah or Brahmin
And I realized
that God is God
And the universe is God and I am God
And that was the end of the story
And my last time I prayed to God
The Cosmic Dog from Goa
My final time with God
Happened a year later
I was staying down in Goa
With my wife
Enjoying being with her
After our reconciliation
We stayed at the Taj Mahal Goa
Living like a King and Queen
Just for a few days
High up on a hill
Overlooking the beach
Every morning I went
down to the beach
And did yoga by the water
While contemplating life
And every morning
I saw the same Dog
Not just a Dog
But a cosmic Dog
Filled with the divine spark of God
And the Dog recognized me
And spoke to me and I knew
That God was present once more
In the face of that cosmic dog
Kindred spirit
perhaps to the cosmic cat
that had saved my soul
in Berkeley so long ago
I told the dog everything
And he just looked at me
With those soulful eyes of his
And I knew he knew that I knew
That he was possessed by God
God had sent him to me
To make sure
that I was on the right path
That the reconciliation that God had promoted
Was on track that I was back with my wife
And that everything was the way it should be
Again I asked God
whether he was Jesus or Allah
Or Brahmin or Ganesh or Buddha
God the cosmic dog
just stared at me
I finally asked him directly
Say if you are God the God of Jesus
Bark once
The Dog looked at me and barked
I said well if you are
Allah bark twice
The dog barked twice
Well are you Buddha
then bark three times if yes
The God Dog barked three times
Hmm well are you Satan
The dog growled at me
And I knew I had gone too far
Finally, I was at peace
And for the next three days
The God Dog
was my constant companion
And I knew God for the final time
In my life
Buddha Cat of Edsall Road
I had another encounter
With the divine recently
Another Cosmic cat perhaps
Perhaps not
who knows what cats are
are they aliens
from another dimension
or was he channeling God ?
I called him the Buddha cat
For the cat loved
Sitting in a meditative pose
Not moving
Just starting at me
With his soulful deep eyes
Boring into my soul
exploring all my secret thoughts
the Buddha cat does not move
does not react, as he is so deep
into his interior mediation
truly in tune with the cat universe
and the cosmos as well
the Buddha cat
seems to be one with God
one with Buddha, Allah, Ganesh
and the billion names of God
Known and unknown
The Buddha cat can teach us all
About the art of meditation
As he zones inward
And loses his soul
Joining the cosmos
And becoming the Buddha cat
The Buddha cat
Lives in a modest Town house
In a modest suburb
The Buddha cat reminds us all
To look for God in the everyday
All around us
If we but have eyes
To see God everywhere
published in The HyperTexts
Dreaming of a New Religious Paradigm
Among the various new age movements, the one that I like the most is “Dudeism”.
I am a Dudist. Dudeism is one of the fastest-growing new religious movements. It is based in Thailand and follows the philosophy expressed in the movie The Big Lebrowski. I brought it all together in my proposed new religion, “Jakeism” which I came up with in a dream.
Jakeism Spreads Around the World
When I retire and move to California one night I have a vision that changed my history and the history of the world. In my vision, I meet Buddha who tells me that I have been appointed to unify the world around a new religion for the new age. I would draw upon the best of Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Christianity, and Islamic thought.
My religion would preach love, tolerance, self-awareness, self-discipline, and care for the planet and other people. It would also preach sexual and personal liberation from the outdated concepts of sexuality. Marriage would be the union of two or more adults of either gender who wished to share a life. Children would reside with their mother but the father would be expected to pay child support and play an active role in raising the children.
And we would use marijuana in our services as a way to get into our inner selves.
And lots of talk about dreams and desires and living the dream fulfilling one’s destinity as one saw it.
We would have services where we would read the great spiritual classics of all faiths and then talk about how to apply the lessons to our lives. The basis of the faith would be drawing upon all traditions but would be an amalgamation of the best of Buddhism, Hinduism, Native American traditions, New Age spirituality, Wiccan, Pagan, Christianity, Islam, Daoist, and Confucian thought. We publish a guide to spiritual traditions that lists 1,000 core books that we use as the basis of our religious traditions.
I write this all down publish a manifesto online and suggest that like-minded individuals get together in my house in Berkeley to discuss it.
The first meeting attracted 12 people the following week 25 and within a month we had over 100 people gathering within one year we had a movement that grew in time and the Church of Jake spread across the country and the world.
The services are soon legendary. We start with yoga and meditation, then the priest and priests – always two = stand up and read several different passages from various traditions and show a video clip or two as well. The Dharma talk lasts a half hour or so. Then we break into small groups that discuss the talk in detail amongst themselves. Then we invite people to comment on what it means to them and how they will implement in their life.
Everyone would be asked to share with their group members something that they felt grateful for and a problem that they were facing. The priests would walk about facilitating the conversation.
Then we have a communal lunch followed by smoking maurijuna and drinking wine or beer. Hard drugs were prohibited to dudeists. Most dudeists were either vegan or vegetarian but fish and chicken would be served to those who ate meat products.
The total service would last two to three hours.
Many congregations started off with a morning hike followed by a vegetarian vegan breakfast before services starting at 10 am with everything wrapping up at 2 pm. Larger congregations held two services one in the morning and one in the evening and most congregations held services every Sunday.
Several dudeist phrases soon become common. Dudeists addressed everyone as Dude. The head priest was called the Head Dude, and the priest was called the Mama Dude. Being called “Undude” was a serious offense and only used to call out being an asshole or a jerk. Don’t be a Jerk was one of the other tenets of Jakeism/dudeism. Being called an asshole or a jerk was also a huge insult amongst the dudeist with the phrase “that is undude, dude” being a particularly harsh comment.
Within ten years 25 percent of people on the West Coast were dudeists and it was the fastest growing religion on the planet.
I was asked to found the first dudeist university, naturally in Berkeley which was considered the spiritual home of Jakeism/Dudism often called the Jakeism/Dueist Mecca.
Jakeism Sweeps the World
One day I woke up
and realized that God
had commissioned me
to form a new religion
for the new era.
For lack of a better term,
I began calling it Jakeism.
I brought together elements
of Buddhism, Confucianism, Christianity,
Hinduism, various new teachings,
native American traditions,
Pengnician
and mystic traditions
from Muslim traditions.
I taught the essential unity
of religious thought
and related it to today’s
spiritually empty life.
I publish a list of spiritual works
everyone should read
and forms a large part of my services.
I called upon people
to embrace a new concept of spirituality
to reconnect to the essential
goodness in humanity
and to reject
the false promises of materialism.
In the most controversial part
of my doctrine,
I called for sexual liberation.
I said that sexuality
was God’s gift to mankind
that women should
be in charge of sex –
they should initiate sex,
and they should tell
their lovers what they want.
Regarding drug use and alcohol use,
I preached that drugs should be legal
but that people
should only indulge in natural drugs
– marijuana, alcohol
and avoid manufactured drugs.
I self-publish
“A New Religion for a New Age”
and invite people to come over to discuss
my teachings
in weekly meetings
at a public park in Berkeley.
The first lecture had 100 people attending,
soon there were hundreds
, and we formed a church
and raised funds to buy a meeting spot.
I am called simply Jake
and my followers become
known as Jokes.
the first service
set the foundation
for other services.
We started with some group chanting,
and some yoga and Tai Chi.
Then after a half hour,
I began to speak
about my basic philosophical orientation
and read excerpts
from the great spiritual works
of mankind always drawing
from Buddhist, Christian, Hindu,
New Age, and Muslim traditions.
After about a half-hour
I invited members
of the audience to reflect
upon the teachings
and in small groups
discuss amongst themselves
what it means to them
and how they will
incorporate the day’s lesson
into an action plan.
Each group reported back
and we ended with a communal potluck meal
including wine and later smoking weed.
Politically I was progressive
and proud of it but also preached
that each person should find
his or her own political space
and should respect the views of others.
As an optional event, we began having open debates
where we would bring together diverse viewpoints
and discuss big issues.
These conversations were recorded
and put on my web page.
The total service took about two hours
and I held services
Saturday, Sunday, and Wednesday nights.
We also preached that people
should get out and enjoy
the great outdoors
and I led hikes throughout the bay area
that were open to all –
on the hikes the participants
had a chance to get to know
their fellows and enjoy the great outdoors.
The two-hour hikes were held on Saturday
and Sunday mornings starting at 8 am
and finishing by 11 am
when we would reassemble for the services.
The hikes were held throughout the Berkeley Oakland area
with people assembling at the church at 7 am
for informal carpools to the sites.
The hikes finished by 10
and people were dropped off at the church
by 10:30 and invited to stay
for the service if they wished.
Each service was recorded
and saved on my website
(one of the first religious websites on the web)
On my website
I had links to all the readings
and a list of what I considered
the best religious
and spiritual writings of all time.
I also had my favorite music playlists
, and trail guides
for the twice-weekly hikes.
Paying for the website
and the services I asked for donations.
Once we had a few services
and it looked like this was going to take off
I formed a church
and invited my key followers
to form a church committee
to help manage the church.
I quit my day job to devote myself
to the church
and asked for donations
for me to be able to do so.
But I vowed to live a simple life.
and so Jakeism was born
and spread rapidly
throughout the West Coast
at the end of the century.
By 2030
it had become a major force
as millions of people
were forming their own Jake churches
loosely affiliated with
Mother Church in Berkeley.
Social conservatives denounced
my movement
as the biggest threat to traditional values
and noted my support for gay rights,
my openly living with two bisexual women,
my public advocacy for drug legalization,
my opposition to the various wars
and military adventure,
and my leftist ‘woke” political views.
However, the movement continued
to grow as it meant
something to people
and was the fastest
-growing religious movement.
in the world.
The Church of the Cosmic Bird
On Sam Adam’s 70th birthday, he went to Tilden Park with an old friend from high school. He had returned to his hometown after his wife had died. He was feeling lonely and out of it. He went to the park, took mushrooms, and had an event that changed his life and the world as well.
He came to a field where he saw a giant black owl. The owl told him that Gaia had chosen him as the goddess of the Earth to find a new religion for a new era. Throughout the afternoon, the bird guide told him and his friend the foundations for the new religion.
The bird would serve as their spirit guide in setting up the new faith.
The faith would combine the best features of the old religions but be a new faith based on respect for all living creatures, respect for the earth, ecological new age teachings, and a philosophy promoting sexual healing among other principles. It would also draw from elements of Dudeism drawn from the movie, the Big Lebowski.
The faith would also feature smoking marijuana and drinking mushroom tea as part of their spiritual practices. Their philosophy of sex was that sex was a good thing; adults were naturally polygamous and bisexual and should live in multiple partnered relationships with their children.
The services would consist of readings from great religious texts followed by a sermon and reflection ending with a call to action by the church members who would be called brothers and sisters. A priest and Nun couple would lead the congregation. Members would address each other as brothers and sisters or as Dudes. Excerpts from the movie, the Big Lebowski were also frequently shown during services. During the service, members would sip mushroom, marijuana tea, wine, coffee, and herbal tea,
Every member would also volunteer two hours per week and would donate their time and money to charity. The services would end with a communal breakfast followed by a five-mile hike and sauna experience.
Sam went home, posed a YouTube video describing his vision for a new religion, and promoted his re-interpretation of classic religious texts. He announced that he would lead a weekly service followed by a walk to the temple in the hills where the Bird guardian lived.
Ten people showed up the first week, twenty the second week and within two months they had a flourishing new church. The church spread widely throughout the world and was called by believers the Church of Gaia and by detractors the Church of the Birdman or as “Dudeists”. Berkeley became the new mecca of the Church.
They were denounced for promoting a pro-gay lifestyle, heathen lifestyle, neo-pagan beliefs, veganism and vegetarianism, and alcohol and drug use. But the faith spread rapidly as it combined new age elements with traditional elements drawn from unitarian and universal church doctrines as well as Buddhist, Christian, Dudist, Islamic, Native American, New Age, Pagan, and Wiccan traditions.
Sam was the head of the faith and was called Uncle Sam. His second wife, Maria Lee, was called Aunt Maria. The bird prophet continued to guide the faith as Uncle Bob Aunt Maria and a few others were able to understand the Bird and his words of wisdom. The bird lived in their house in Berkeley Hills.
He led the faith for thirty years and when he died the faith had 300 million followers and was the fourth-largest faith in the world. True to his faith doctrines most members lived in group marriages which were finally recognized due to the constant lobbying by the church membership mushroom use was also legalized, and members were vegan and vegetarian, and all used marijuana, mushroom tea, and wine during services, other drugs were forbidden. They also had a list of 10,000 spiritual texts which they used during services and read frequently.
The church promoted the California sex consensus which called for a woman to be in charge of sexuality and called for sexual and spiritual liberation.
the Church of the Dude launched at a Bowling Ally Big Lebowski
Jason Lee was a big fan
Of the cult classic movie
The “Big Lebowski.”
Which chronicles
The life and time
Of the “Dude”.
Who is mistaken
For a bad dude
By some other dudes
But in the end
As all Dudes do
He abided
While bowling
Jason met at the bowling ally
Sam Jackson who was also
A devotee of all things Dude
And one of the founders
Of the Church of the Dude in Thailand.
Recently he returned to his hometown
In search of spiritual redemption.
As they bowled and bonded
They decided to form
The Church of the Dude
Launching it at Albany Bowl.
The news went viral
Dudists all showed up
Watching the movie.
Then bowling
And hanging out.
The Church of the Dude
Was launched.
Spreading rapidly among
The hipster set.
CO-Pilot Background info on the movie The Big Lebowski
and on the Church of the Dude which is a real thing
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt
Lairdism
Lairdism is a religion founded by best friend, Robert Sicular, who on an ACID trip realized that Laird Williamson was God. Lairdism spread among his circle of friends. But unfortunately, it never really took off.
Church of the Three Bs Beer, Blues and Baseball
Another friend of mine founded a fake new Church in the 1980s called the Church of the Three Bs – Beer, Blues and Baseball
members would get together from time to time to drink beer, go to blues concerts and baseball games. it took never really took off.
Flying Spaghetti Monster
The Flying Spaghetti Monster was founded as a joke religion to counter the rise of Christian fundamentalists. Rastafarians as they call themselves worship the Giant Spaghetti monster who secretly controls the universe. This one did take off. Co-PIlot provides the background:
Flying Spaghetti Monster (Rastafarianism):
This is a parody religion that promotes a light-hearted view of religion. It originated in opposition to the teaching of intelligent design in public schools in the United States. The deity of this religion is the Flying Spaghetti Monster, and its followers are known as Rastafarians. You can find more information here and here.
Another parody religion is the Church of the Sub Genius based on the teaching of JR Bob Dobbs, a sort of everyman kind of like the cartoon character, Homer Simpson..
: This is another parody religion that satirizes better-known belief systems. It focuses on J. R. “Bob” Dobbs, a purported salesman from the 1950s, who is revered as a prophet by the Church. The Church of the SubGenius teaches a complex philosophy involving gods, conspiracies, and the pursuit of “Slack.” More details can be found here and here.
Founded by Sun Myung Moon in 1954 in Seoul, South Korea, this new religious movement is derived from Christianity. Its members are called Unifications or Moonies. The church is known for its mass weddings and unique Christian theology.
I have a few true stories about my encounters with the Unification Church, aka the Moonies I first became aware of the Moonies when I took a sociological research class in college in 1978 at the University of the Pacific. For our group term paper we researched the recruitment practices of the unification church which were becoming quite controversial .
We went to SF to one of their centers and went to their free dinner and pretended to be interested noting how they tried to recruit us to join them. We did not go to their weekend retreat in Booneville based on our professor’s recommendation. We got an A on the paper.
In 1982, when I got married in South Korea we had to register our marriage at the local government office. The clerk there was suspicious and asked us if we were Moonies. He said that the Moonies had held a mass marriage rally the day before and they were overwhelmed with foreigners coming into register their marriage. When we told him we were not Moonies, he became quite friendly and welcoming to us.
The founder of the Church died a few years ago, and the movement has been in disarray as his children have been fighting for control of the movement which is closely tied to right-wing political figures in Japan, South Korea, and the United States.
Co-pilot provided more background information
The assassination of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in July 2022 brought to light the controversial ties between Abe and the Unification Church, also known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification. The suspect, Tetsuya Yamagami, reportedly targeted Abe due to his connections with the church, which Yamagami blamed for bankrupting his family through excessive donations made by his mother2.
The Unification Church, founded in South Korea by Sun Myung Moon, has long been associated with conservative political figures and movements, both in Japan and internationally. The church’s influence in Japan dates back to the Cold War era when it aligned with anti-communist efforts. Abe’s grandfather, Nobusuke Kishi, was also known to have connections with the church3.
Following Abe’s assassination, the Japanese government has taken steps to investigate and potentially disband the Unification Church due to its controversial fundraising practices and the impact on its followers. The church has faced numerous lawsuits and public scrutiny over its methods, which have included charging followers large sums of money for spiritual merchandise2.
Founded by L. Ron Hubbard, Scientology is a set of beliefs and practices that are often described as a cult, a business, a religion, or a scam. It involves concepts like the theta (spiritual being), auditing, and the controversial figure Xenu.
I also have a story to tell about the Scientology movement. When I was in high school, I took as a lark a free personality test at a local Scientology center. The tester came out and told me that I was totally messed up and they could help me. Amused, I went to another center, took the test but changed all my answers and they told me the same thing. They started calling me at home begging me to come to their center for their assistance. I finally told them I was not interested and besides, I was a minor and could not legally sign a contract for their training program. I concluded that it was all a scam.
Hare Krishna (ISKCON):
I first encountered the Hari Krishnas in Berkeley which had an active chapter. Later when I was in India I met a lot of Hindu believers including Hari Krishna devotees Ganesh, and Jain followers.
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement, was founded in 1965 by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhu Pada. It is a Western outgrowth of the Bengali bhakti yoga tradition and focuses on the worship of Krishna.
Korea has been a fertile ground for new religious movements, cults in other words. The most infamous are the Moonies but there are many others as well
Co-pilot provided more background information
Shinchan (New Heaven and New Earth)
Founded by Lee Man-hee, this group gained international attention during the COVID-19 pandemic when it was linked to a significant outbreak in South Korea. The group believes that Lee is the second coming of Jesus Christ.
JMS (Jesus Morning Star):
Led by Jeong Myeong-seok, this group has been involved in numerous controversies, including allegations of sexual abuse. The Netflix documentary series “In the Name of God: A Holy Betrayal” covers this cult extensively.
Salvation Sect (Evangelical Baptist Church of Korea):
This group came into the spotlight after the Sewol ferry disaster, as its leader Yoo Byung-eun was linked to the tragedy. The sect has been accused of corruption and poor management practices.
Providence (Jesus Morning Star):
Another group led by Jeong Myeong-seok, it has been involved in numerous controversies, including allegations of sexual abuse. The Netflix documentary series “In the Name of God: A Holy Betrayal” covers this cult extensively.
I visited Rajneesh Puram in 1982 with my Father. I had just finished the Peace Corps in Korea and my father picked me up in Seattle and we drove to the Bay area after spending a few days in our summer cabin near Yakima. We drove back through Eastern Oregon and stopped off at Rajneesh Puram which was in the news and had a vegetarian lunch there. The Ragness servers were friendly but a bit weird. The Netflix documentary listed below provided a lot of details about the controversial cult.
Co-Pilot provided background information.
Sure! The Rajneesh cult, also known as the Rajneesh, was founded by Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh (later known as Osho) in India. In the early 1980s, the group relocated to the United States and established a commune called Rajneesh Puram in Wasco County, Oregon, near the small town of Antelope. The group purchased a 64,000-acre ranch and transformed it into a thriving community with its own infrastructure, including a fire department, police, restaurants, and even an airport.
The Rajneesh became infamous for their controversial practices and conflicts with local residents. They were involved in a series of legal battles, and their activities included a bioterror attack in 1984, where they poisoned salad bars in local restaurants with salmonella, sickening over 700 people. The group also faced allegations of voter fraud, wiretapping, and assassination plots2.
The story of the Rajneesh and their time in Oregon is documented in the Netflix series “Wild Wild Country,” which provides an in-depth look at the rise and fall of Rajneesh Puram. You can watch the documentary here.
For further reading, you can check out these articles:
The Norse religion has been undergoing a revival in Germany and Norway. Co-Pilot provided background information.
Absolutely! The revival of the Old Norse religion, often referred to as Heathenry or Asatru, has gained traction in recent years. This modern Pagan religion draws inspiration from the pre-Christian beliefs and practices of the Germanic peoples, particularly those of the Viking Age.
Key Aspects of the Revival:
Beliefs and Practices: Heathenry is typically polytheistic, centering on a pantheon of deities from pre-Christian Germanic Europe, such as Odin, Thor, and Freyja. Rituals, known as blots, are performed to honor these gods, ancestors, and spirits of the land. These rituals often involve offerings of food and drink.
Cosmology: The religion adopts an animistic view of the cosmos, where the natural world is imbued with spirits. The world tree, Yggdrasil, and various realms like Midgard (the human world) and Asgard (the realm of the gods) are central to Norse cosmology.
Ethics and Values: Heathen ethical systems emphasize honor, personal integrity, and loyalty. Community and kinship are also highly valued.
Modern Movements: The revival has led to the formation of various organizations and communities, such as the Ásatrúarfélagið in Iceland and the Troth in the United States. These groups often gather for communal rituals and celebrations.
There has been a revival of interest in both the ancient Roman and Greek religions in recent years. I see a similarity in the revival of interest in the Norse religions, and Hinduism as well.
CO-Pilot provided background information
The religion of the Roman Empire was polytheistic, meaning they worshipped multiple gods and goddesses. The Romans adopted many gods from the Greeks, such as Jupiter (Zeus), Juno (Hera), and Neptune (Poseidon), and also incorporated gods from other cultures they encountered. They believed in maintaining good relations with the gods through rituals and sacrifices to ensure the prosperity and success of the empire2.
Revival of Roman Religion
There have been modern attempts to revive the Roman religion, known as Reconstructionist Roman religion. Organizations like Nova Roma aim to restore classical Roman religion, culture, and virtues. They celebrate Roman festivals, perform rituals, and promote the study of Roman culture and philosophy4.
Ancient Greek Religion
Ancient Greek religion was also polytheistic, with a pantheon of gods and goddesses such as Zeus, Athena, Apollo, and Artemis. The Greeks believed in performing rituals and sacrifices to honor the gods and ensure their favor5. Greek religion influenced Roman religion and other cultures around the Mediterranean.
Ancient Egyptian Religion
Ancient Egyptian religion was centered around the worship of many gods and goddesses, such as Ra (the sun god), Isis (the goddess of magic and motherhood), and Osiris (the god of the afterlife). They believed in an afterlife and performed elaborate burial rituals to ensure the deceased’s safe passage to the next world6.
Revival of Ancient Religions
While there haven’t been significant revival attempts for ancient Greek and Egyptian religions, there is a growing interest in studying and understanding these ancient belief systems. Many people today are fascinated by the mythology, rituals, and philosophies of these ancient cultures.
For further reading, you can check out these resources:
Growing up one of my friends was a Mormon. He gave me the Book of Mormon which I read. I told him that it read as sci-fi novel. Over the years I met a number of Mormons as there are quite a few in the Foreign Service and I met them overseas as Mormon misisonaries are everywhere.
Co-pilot provided background information
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), often referred to as the Mormon Church, was founded in 1830 by Joseph Smith. Here are some key differences in their beliefs compared to mainstream Christian denominations:
Key Beliefs
Restoration of the Gospel: Mormons believe that after the death of Jesus and the apostles, a “Great Apostasy” occurred, leading to a loss of priesthood authority and changes in biblical texts. They believe that Joseph Smith restored the true church through visions and revelations.
Additional Scriptures: Besides the Bible, Mormons also consider the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price as sacred texts.
Eternal Progression: They believe in the potential for humans to become like God and live eternally in His presence.
Baptism for the Dead: Mormons perform baptisms on behalf of deceased individuals to offer them the chance of salvation.
Health Code: The Word of Wisdom advises members to abstain from alcohol, tobacco, coffee, and tea.
Plural Marriage: Historically, Mormons practiced polygamy, but the mainstream LDS Church banned it in 1890. Some fundamentalist groups still practice it.
Membership and Distribution
As of 2023, the LDS Church has over 17 million members worldwide. The majority of members live in the United States, particularly in Utah. However, there are significant populations in other countries, including Mexico, Brazil, and the Philippines.
Would you like to know more about any specific aspect of the Mormon Church?
Jehovah’s Witness
My college roomate, Jeff, grew up in a Jehovah Witness family. one thing that i remember is that Jehovah witnesses do not exchange gifts on Christmas or birthdays. On his birthday, we gave him birthday presents which he said were the first birthday presents he had ever received as his parents did not celebrate birthday or Christmas as Jehovah Witesses. He took too much LSD one night and became convinced he was the reincarnation of Jesus Christ. If he had been handsome and charistmatic, he could have formed a cult but since he was neither he just became another sad LSD victim.
Co-pilot provided more background information
Jehovah’s Witnesses are a Christian denomination known for their distinct beliefs and practices. Founded in the late 19th century by Charles Taze Russell, they emphasize the imminent establishment of God’s Kingdom on Earth and reject traditional Christian doctrines like the Trinity and the immortality of the soul.
Key Beliefs and Practices:
Non-Trinitarian: Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that God (Jehovah) is distinct from Jesus and the Holy Spirit, rejecting the concept of the Trinity.
Jesus Christ: They view Jesus as God’s son and a created being, not co-equal with God.
Scripture: They use their own Bible translation, the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures.
Holidays and Celebrations: They do not celebrate traditional Christian holidays like Christmas and Easter, nor do they celebrate birthdays.
Evangelism: Known for their door-to-door evangelism, they actively preach and distribute literature.
Differences from Mainstream Christianity:
Trinity: Mainstream Christians believe in the Trinity, where God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are one entity. Jehovah’s Witnesses reject this concept.
Jesus’ Divinity: Christians believe Jesus is both fully God and fully man, while Jehovah’s Witnesses see Jesus as a created being.
Salvation: Mainstream Christianity teaches salvation through faith in Jesus Christ alone, whereas Jehovah’s Witnesses emphasize faith, good works, and preaching efforts.
Demographics:
As of 2024, there are approximately 9 million Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide.
They have a presence in most countries, with significant populations in the United States, Mexico, Brazil, and Italy.
In the U.S., they make up less than 1% of the adult population.
Church of Satan
Growing up in the Bay Area, the Church of Satan, based in San Franciso was quite controversal. It still is. they are currently trying to get permission to supply religious chaplans to serve in Floridian schools after a recent law authorizing religous chaplans in Florida schools. They are also trying to become certified to serve as chaplans in the US military.
Many years ago i was driving with a visiting high school friend to Montecello. On the way back, we amused ourselves listening to AM Jesus stations. One was blathering on about the Jesus diet when it faded out and was replaced by the Rolling Stones Satanic anthem Sympathy for the Devil. the two stations battled it out but Satan won in the end which we felt was a fitting metaphor for re-entering the DC metro area after a visit to Southern Christian dominated Virginia.
Co-pilot provided the following background information
The Church of Satan, founded by Anton Szandor LaVey in 1966 in San Francisco, is a religious organization dedicated to LaVeyan Satanism. Contrary to popular belief, members of the Church of Satan do not worship Satan as a supernatural being. Instead, they view Satan as a symbol of individualism, pride, and enlightenment. The Church promotes humanistic values and encourages members to embrace their natural instincts, which they believe have been wrongly suppressed by traditional Abrahamic faiths.
The Church of Satan has faced controversy over its attempts to be recognized as a legitimate religious organization. This controversy often stems from misconceptions about Satanism and its association with evil or criminal activities. However, the Church of Satan emphasizes that it does not engage in or promote any illegal or harmful behavior. The organization has sought legal recognition and equal treatment under the law, similar to other religious groups.
As for the number of Satanists in the U.S., it’s challenging to provide an exact figure. Estimates suggest that there are a few thousand self-identified Satanists in the country. The Church of Satan does not disclose its membership numbers, but it is considered the most influential and well-known Satanic organization.
When I did my DNA testing a few years back, it confirmed family lore that I am part Jewish on my father’s side of the family as one of my great grandfathers was a Russian Jew living in Norway. many of my friends growing up were Jews. as one of them put it, he was part of the international conspiracy of communists and jews as his father was a member of the communist party. I also had what we called back in the day a “Jewfro” due to my curly black hair.
I wrote a poem about visiting the Holocaust museum, after finding out I was Jewish.
Thoughts on Visiting the Holocaust Memorial Museum in DC
Never Again -published in April 2022 20th Yom HaShoah PSH special edition
Thoughts on Visiting the Holocaust Memorial Museum in DC
San Adams
Had never been
To the Holocaust Museum,
Despite the fact
He had lived
And worked in DC for decades
One day after he retired
He said to himself
It was long past time
To finally see the holocaust museum
He went the week
After Charleston,
When the mob had chanted,
Jews will not replace us.
The museum affected him deeply
He had just confirmed
Through DNA
That he had at least 10 percent
Jewish ancestry
Among the 18 other nationalities
Swirling among these bloodlines
Sam Adams was concerned
Those elements of antisemitism
We’re emerging among
The MAGA crowd.
But he dismissed
The fears that Trump
Was another Hitler
As liberal hyperbole
It could not happen here
A new holocaust
Would never happen
But now he was not so sure
Neo-Fascism Must Be Defeated Again
In this day and age of fake news
And neo-fascism rising yet again
It is important to bear witness
To the undeniable fact
That the holocaust can never come again
That is what we must vow every day
Never again
The rest of the poems I submitted are on my blog page.
Yom HaShoah -. April 27, 2022. History reminds us of not only what has passed, but it also narrates tales of sufferings and victories, and this is why we celebrate Yom HaShoah, which takes place on Nisan 27. If the 27th is adjacent to the Jewish Sabbath, the date shifts by a day. This year, it begins at sunset on April 27 and ends at sunset …
Yom HaShoah 2022 / יוֹם הַשּׁוֹאָה 5782 Holocaust Memorial Day ️. Yom HaShoah for Hebrew Year 5782 begins at sundown on Wednesday, 27 April 2022, and ends at nightfall on Thursday, 28 April 2022. Yom HaZikaron HaShoah ve-laG’vurah (יום הזיכרון לשואה ולגבורה; “Holocaust and Heroism Remembrance Day”), known colloquially in Israel and abroad as Yom HaShoah …
Yom Hashoah for the year 2022 is celebrated/ observed on sundown of Wednesday, April 27th ending at sundown on Thursday, April 28. Yom Hashoah also called Holocaust Remembrance Day commemorates the lives of the Jewish people who died in the Holocaust of World War 2. This day is remembered in the Hebrew calendar on the 27th day of Nisan.
National Yom HaShoah UK Commemoration 2022. Please join us on the evening of Wednesday 27 th April as Yom HaShoah begins, for an online, live National Holocaust Commemoration event, which you will be able to watch here. You can watch last year’s National Holocaust Commemoration, along with other educational content on our YouTube channel.
History Corner – Yom HaShoah 2022. By Carl Wetzstein. In the past, I’ve written about my experiences in the Holocaust and also spoke about Righteous Gentiles, people who helped save Jews during the Holocaust. The accounts of the Righteous Gentiles were second-hand, based on books and articles that I read. This History Corner is based on …
Yom Hashoah April 27, 2022 – April 28, 2022. Homepage » Teaching Topic & Event Resource Calendar » April » Yom Hashoah. What is Yom Hashoah? Yom Hashoah is the annual day of remembrance of the victims of the Holocaust. It is the Jewish Holocaust Memorial Day, observed by Jews worldwide.
Co-PIlot provided more background information:
Sure thing! The Jewish community in the U.S. is diverse and vibrant. As of 2020, there are about 7.5 million Jews in the U.S., making up approximately 2.4% of the total population.
In terms of religious denominations, about 35% identify as Reform, 18% as Conservative, and 11% as Orthodox. The remaining percentage includes other groups and those who do not identify with any particular denomination.
The largest Jewish communities are found in states like New York, New Jersey, and Florida. Cities with significant Jewish populations include New York City, Los Angeles,, San Fracisco, DC metro,Miami.
Regarding Holocaust survivors, there are still many living in the U.S. today. For example, New York alone has an estimated 25,000 Holocaust survivors.
For more information, you can visit the .
Islam in the U.S.
the Muslim community is the fastest growing religious group in the US after the “nones” they played a huge role in the last election, many of them leaving the Democratic party and voting for Trump despite his record of hostility to the Islam community.
During my FS career, I had many Muslim friends, particularly when I served in India.
Co-PIlot provided more details:
Sure thing! The Muslim community in the United States is quite diverse and has grown significantly over the years. As of 2020, there are about 4.45 million Muslims in the U.S., making up approximately 1.34% of the total population.
The majority of American Muslims are Sunni, making up about 73% of the Muslim population, while Shia Muslims account for around 16%. The remaining percentage includes other groups such as the Nation of Islam, Ahmadiyya, and non-denominational Muslims.
Regarding ISIS affiliation, it’s important to note that the vast majority of American Muslims are not affiliated with ISIS. There have been some cases of individuals attempting to join or support ISIS, but these instances are relatively rare. For example, a report from George Washington University found that 71 Americans had been arrested for ISIS-related activities since 2014. However, these individuals come from varied backgrounds and do not represent the broader Muslim community in the U.S.
The Nation of Islam (NOI) is a religious organization founded in 1930 by Wallace Fard Muhammad. It is known for its teachings that combine elements of traditional Islam with Black nationalist ideas. The NOI promotes racial unity, self-help, and economic self-sufficiency for African Americans. The group has had notable leaders such as Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X, and Louis Farrakhan. While the NOI’s beliefs differ from mainstream Islam, it has played a significant role in the African American community and the civil rights movement.
Rise of Christian Nationalism in the United States
Christian Nationalism is on the rise in the U.S. and around the world, with perhaps 30 percent of Americans self identifying with the movement which is closely linked to the Republican Party and Donald Trump’s MAGA movement.
Some in the movement advocate dominism calling for Christians to take over the seven key mountains and rule the world in accordance with God’s will, ushering in the end days.
CO-Pilot provides more background information on this growing movement.
certainly! Christian nationalism is a political ideology that advocates for the fusion of Christianity with a nation’s civic and political life. It seeks to establish or maintain a legal and cultural fusion of Christian religion with a nation’s character2. This ideology has been gaining traction both in the United States and globally.
In the United States
Christian nationalism in the U.S. has been particularly prominent in recent years. It often involves advocating for policies that privilege Christianity in the public square, such as displaying Christian symbols on public property, promoting Christian values in public schools, and opposing abortion and LGBTQ+ rights2. This movement has been linked to the rise of the MAGA (Make America Great Again) movement and has found significant support among white evangelical Christians.
Globally
Christian nationalism is not confined to the U.S. It has been observed in various countries around the world, including Brazil, France, Italy, Poland, Hungary, and Russia3. In these countries, Christian nationalism often aligns with right-wing populist movements and can lead to exclusionary and sometimes violent actions against religious and ethnic minorities. For example, in Brazil, former President Jair Bolsonaro garnered significant support from evangelical Christians by intertwining nationalism with Christian faith3.
Concerns and Criticisms
Critics argue that Christian nationalism is fundamentally at odds with a pluralistic society, as it seeks to define a country as Christian, thereby marginalizing non-Christian populations. It can also lead to antidemocratic and violent behavior, as seen in events like the Capitol insurrection in the U.S1. The ideology is often linked to racist, misogynistic, authoritarian, and homophobic views.
Conclusion
The rise of Christian nationalism poses significant challenges to democracy and social harmony both in the U.S. and globally. It highlights the need for vigilance in protecting the separation of church and state and ensuring that all citizens, regardless of their religious beliefs, are treated with equality and respect.
Contemporary Atheism in the US:
Note: I grew up in perhaps one of the most secular cities in one of the most secular States in one of the most secular eras, the 60s and 70s in the Bay Area. Yet even in the Bay Area there are almost no public officials who are openly ”atheist” My father was one of the few elected officials who was not publically a Christian. He was an atheist and my mother was a lapsed Southern Baptist.
Co-Pilot provide additional background information.
In the United States, the percentage of people identifying as non-religious, often referred to as the “nones,” has been steadily increasing. According to a 2021 Pew Research Center survey, about 29% of U.S. adults identify as religiously unaffiliated, which includes atheists, agnostics, and those who describe their religion as “nothing in particular”. This is a significant increase from 16% in 20061.
Global Atheism:
Globally, the number of people who identify as atheists or non-religious varies widely by region. According to a 2012 Pew Research Center study, 16% of the world’s population is not affiliated with any religion. This includes both atheists and agnostics2. The highest concentrations of non-religious people are found in countries like Sweden, Vietnam, Denmark, Norway, and Japan.
Wicca Religious Movement
I once took a quiz online by beliefnet to determine what religion I am most in tune with. the top choice was Wicca, New Age or Buddhism, the least compatble was fundamentalism, mormonism and Islam. that sounds about right, LOL.
followers are called witches and warlocks and gather together in Covens.
CO-Pilot provided background information.
Wicca, also known as “The Craft,” is a modern pagan, earth-centered religion. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and introduced to the public in 1954 by Gerald Gardner, a retired British civil servant. Wicca draws upon ancient pagan traditions and 20th-century Hermetic motifs for its theological and ritual purposes1.
Core Beliefs and Practices:
Duo theism: Wiccans typically venerate both a Goddess and a God, often referred to as the Triple Goddess and the Horned God.
Rituals and Festivals: Wiccans celebrate both lunar cycles (Esbats) and solar cycles (Sabbats), which include festivals like the solstices and equinoxes.
Nature Reverence: Nature plays a central role in Wiccan beliefs and practices, with rituals often held outdoors and involving natural elements like fire, water, earth, and air.
The Wiccan Rede: A popular expression of Wiccan morality, often summarized as “An it harm none, do what ye will.”
New Age Religious Movement
Very big in California particularly during the 60s and 70s. I have been heavily influenced and consider myself a New Age type. Co-pilot provided more background information.
Co-PIlot provided backgroud information
The New Age movement is a broad and eclectic range of spiritual or religious beliefs and practices that emerged in Western society during the 1970s. It draws heavily from esoteric traditions, including Spiritualism, Theosophy, and various forms of occultism4.
Core Beliefs and Practices:
Holistic Divinity: The New Age movement typically accepts a holistic form of divinity that pervades the universe, including human beings.
Personal Transformation: Emphasis on personal transformation and healing, often through practices like meditation, yoga, and alternative medicine.
Age of Aquarius: Many New Age believers anticipate a coming “Age of Aquarius,” a period of enlightenment and spiritual awakening.
Syncretism: The movement is highly syncretic, incorporating elements from various religious and spiritual traditions.
Both Wicca and the New Age movement emphasize personal spiritual experiences and a deep connection to nature. They offer alternative spiritual paths for those seeking a more individualized and nature-focused approach to spirituality.
Asian Religious Traditions in the U.S.
Also big in the West Coast since the 1950s. Many of the beatnit writers were Buddhists. If I had to choose one religion for me it would be Buddhism.
I have been heavily influenced by Buddhism which I first learned about in a college World Religions class, one of the best classes I took as an undergraduate. I became fascinated by Buddhism after I went to Korea. Lately my Korean born wife has become more of a Buddhist frequently quoting Buddhist masters who are popular on You Tube in Korea.
Co-pilot provided background information:
Absolutely! The growth of Buddhism and other Asian religions in the U.S. is a fascinating topic.
Buddhism in the U.S.
Buddhism has seen significant growth in the United States, particularly since the mid-20th century. The increase in Asian immigration, especially after changes in U.S. immigration laws in the 1960s, played a crucial role in this growth1. By the 1980s, many Buddhist communities had sprouted across the country. Today, Buddhism is practiced by millions of Americans, with notable concentrations in states like California and Hawaii1.
Other Asian Religions
Alongside Buddhism, other Asian religions such as Hinduism, Sikhism, and Taoism have also gained a foothold in the U.S. The Pew Research Center reports that Asian Americans have contributed significantly to the diversity of the U.S. religious landscape3. For instance, Hindus and Buddhists together account for about the same share of the U.S. public as Jews (roughly 2%). Additionally, many Asian Americans identify with Christianity or have no particular religious affiliation2.
Factors Contributing to Growth
Several factors have contributed to the growth of these religions:
Immigration: The influx of Asian immigrants has brought their religious traditions to the U.S.
Cultural Exchange: Increased interest in Eastern philosophies and practices, especially during the 1960s and 1970s, has led many Americans to explore these religions.
Community Support: The establishment of temples, meditation centers, and cultural organizations has provided a supportive environment for practitioners
Note: Korean American churches have played a huge role in the Korean diaspora in America with most Korean immigrants belonging to a Church where they meet fellow Koreans.
Impact on American Society
The presence of these diverse religious traditions has enriched the cultural and spiritual landscape of the U.S. It has also fostered greater understanding and appreciation of different cultural practices and beliefs.
Native American Traditions
My mother’s parents were part Cherokee and spoke Cherokee and followed some of the Cherokee religious traditions, including paying attention to dreams.
Native American spiritual and religious traditions are incredibly diverse, reflecting the rich cultural heritage of the many different tribes and communities across North America. Here are some key aspects:
Core Beliefs
Animism: Many Native American traditions believe in animism, the idea that all things—animals, plants, rocks, rivers, and even weather—have a spirit.
Great Spirit: A central figure in many Native American religions is the Great Spirit or Creator, who is seen as a guiding force in the universe.
Connection to Nature: Nature plays a crucial role in these traditions, with a deep respect for the earth, often referred to as “Mother Earth.”
Rituals and Ceremonies
Rituals: These can include ceremonies for healing, coming-of-age, and seasonal changes. For example, the Sun Dance is a significant ceremony practiced by several Plains tribes.
Storytelling: Oral traditions are vital, with stories passed down through generations that explain the creation of the world, moral lessons, and historical events.
Shamanism: Many tribes have shamans or spiritual leaders who act as intermediaries between the physical and spiritual worlds.
Symbols and Art
Totem Poles: Used by tribes such as the Haida and Tlingit, these poles are carved with symbols representing clan lineage, stories, and cultural beliefs.
Dreamcatchers: Originally from the Ojibwe tribe, these are used to protect individuals from bad dreams.
Community and Values
Generosity: Acts of giving and sharing are central values, often demonstrated through ceremonies like potlatches.
Respect for Elders: Elders are highly respected for their wisdom and knowledge, and their teachings are integral to the community’s spiritual life.
Adaptation and Revitalization
Despite the challenges posed by colonization and modernization, many Native American communities have worked to preserve and revitalize their spiritual traditions. This includes both a return to traditional practices and the adaptation of new forms of expression.
Q-Anon
One of the weirdest cults out there and it is a cult is Q. First emerged in 2017 and continues to this day although the founder Q quit communicating in 2020. Co-PIlot provides background information:
QAnon is a conspiracy theory that emerged in 2017 on the internet forum 4chan. It revolves around the belief that a secret cabal of satanic, cannibalistic pedophiles controls the world, and that former U.S. President Donald Trump was fighting against this cabal. The theory has its roots in earlier conspiracy theories like Pizzagate and has been linked to various violent incidents.
The movement gained traction through social media and has amassed millions of followers. It has been labeled a domestic terrorism threat by the FBI due to its potential to incite violence. Despite the lack of new “Q drops” since December 2020, the movement continues to persist and adapt.
For a more detailed overview, you can check out this .
it is amazing to me that 10 percent of Americans subscribe to this belief, believing that a cabal of shape shifting reptilian overlords secretly control the world. Some of the Q followers believe in the shape shifting alien conspiracy.
i wrote a number of Sci-Fi stories on this theme. In my version, the shape shifting aliens are descendents of aliens from the planet Sirius who settled in Atlantis and Lemuria. a war broke broke out between the red faction and the green faction. The red faction wanted to enslave proto humans who they saw as sub-human beasts, and the Green faction who wanted to educate the natives. the war destroyed Atlantis and their descendents fled, most died off but a few remain as secret overlords waiting until the human race develops space travel, and they would then return to their homeworld and re-launch an invasion of earth.
Co-PIlot provided background information
Sure thing! One of the most well-known fringe theories about shape-shifting aliens is the belief in Reptilian humanoids. This theory suggests that a race of reptilian aliens, often referred to as “Reptoids” or “Lizard People,” have infiltrated human society and are secretly controlling world events.
Origins and Beliefs
David Icke: The theory was popularized by David Icke, a British conspiracy theorist, who claims that many world leaders and influential figures are actually shape-shifting reptilian aliens. According to Icke, these Reptilians are part of a global conspiracy to control humanity.
Ancient Aliens: Some proponents of the theory believe that these Reptilians have been present on Earth for thousands of years and have influenced human history and culture.
Characteristics
Shape-shifting: The Reptilians are believed to have the ability to change their appearance to look human, allowing them to blend in and manipulate society from positions of power.
Control and Manipulation: Followers of this theory often believe that Reptilians control major institutions, including governments, corporations, and the media, to maintain their dominance over humanity.
Criticism and Skepticism
Lack of Evidence: The theory is widely criticized for its lack of empirical evidence and is often dismissed as a baseless conspiracy.
Psychological Explanations: Some psychologists suggest that belief in such theories may be a way for individuals to make sense of complex and often frightening world events
American Religious Cults
As discussed above, I have had some interactions over the years with various cults, including the Moonies, the Hari Krishnas, and Scientology. THe People’s Temple was a big event that happened while I was in college. Same thing with Heaven’s Gate, and Ragnesh movement, I visited Raghnes Puram (nee Antelope, Oregon) with my father in 1992.
.
Co-pilot provided background information
Religious cults in the U.S. have a long and often controversial history. Cults are typically characterized by their charismatic, authoritarian leaders and their ability to draw in followers with unique belief systems or supposed prophetic powers. Here are some of the most commonly considered cults in the U.S.:
Manson Family: Led by Charles Manson in the late 1960s, this group believed in an impending race war and carried out a series of murders in California.
Peoples Temple: Founded by Jim Jones, this group is infamous for the mass suicide-murder in Jonestown, Guyana, in 1978.
Heaven’s Gate: Led by Marshall Applewhite, members believed that leaving their bodies behind would transfer their consciousness into an extraterrestrial being.
Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS): Founded by Warren Jeffs, this group practices polygamy and has been involved in numerous legal issues, including child abuse.
Rajneeshpuram: Led by Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh (Osho), this group attempted to take over a town in Oregon in the early 1980s.
Love Has Won: A more recent group, known for its leader’s claim of being a divine being and the mysterious death of its leader in 2021.
Sullivanians: A psychotherapy cult founded by Dr. Jaqueline Hobson, known for its communal living and controversial practices.
These groups have often been the subject of media attention and legal scrutiny due to their unconventional beliefs and practices. It’s important to note that the term “cult” can be pejorative, and some prefer to use “new religious movements” to describe these organizations.
Cthulu Cult
Finally, we should mention the Cthulu cult which played a big role in the fiction of HP Lovecraft. Some believers in the occult believe that HP Lovecraft was writing true stories not fiction.
Co-Pilot provided background information. can you tell me about the Ctuhulu mythos of HP Lovecraft?
The Cthulhu Mythos is a shared fictional universe created by H.P. Lovecraft; an American writer known for his works of horror fiction. The mythos is centered around ancient, cosmic deities and other worldly horrors that exist beyond human comprehension1. Here are some key elements:
Key Elements of the Cthulhu Mythos:
Cthulhu: The central creature in Lovecraft’s seminal short story “The Call of Cthulhu,” first published in 1928. Cthulhu is depicted as a gigantic, octopus-like being that lies dormant in the sunken city of R’lyeh1.
Great Old Ones: A pantheon of ancient, powerful deities from space who once ruled the Earth and have since fallen into a deathlike sleep. These beings include Cthulhu, Nyarlathotep, Azathoth, and others1.
Cosmic Horror: Lovecraft’s stories emphasize the complete irrelevance of mankind in the face of these cosmic horrors. The human mind is unable to fully comprehend the existence of these entities, leading to madness and despair1.
Necronomicon: A fictional grimoire that appears in many of Lovecraft’s stories, containing knowledge of the Great Old Ones and other forbidden lore.
For several years, there has been a debate over the nations of North America. In the late 70s, journalists and political scientists first floated the idea that there are ten to twelve nations of North America, not just three nation-states. In fact, if you add in Central America and the Caribbean islands, there could be 25 nations of North America, including Greenland and the Panama Canal.
Recently, President Trump has proposed taking over Greenland, Panama, and Canada. Some on the left have also proposed merging Blue States with Canada.
The three nations of North America were three multi-state nations subdivided into distinct regional states. According to political science, there is a difference between a nation in the cultural sense and a nation in a political sense. Ideally, the two should be the same, as in France or Germany. But in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, there were ten to fifteen distinct nations in a cultural sense, three in a political sense, and 75 or so sub-national states. In other words, California is a distinct nation (perhaps five nations), as is Texas, as is the Midwest, etc.
Great Divorce
In my novel, “The Great Divorce,” I foresee a Civil War 2.0 resulting in ten nations of North America. I also foresee the possibility of a peaceful evolution into new nations.
I explore this in my unpublished novel, “The Great Divorce.” In the novel, I divided North America into 15 nations as follows in my unpublished novel, “The Great Divorce.” The Christian States and their allies were Christian theocratic authoritarian governments, while the West Coast and East Coast were secular democracies, as were the rest of the nations. In the Christian States, sex outside of marriage was illegal, as were homosexuality, transgenderism, abortion, pornography, drugs, alcohol, and gambling. The public schools were all run by the Church, and there was a strict social morality test required for all government employees and schoolteachers. The official language was English, and immigration was limited to Christians, favoring European immigration. The Christian States were openly white supremacist in policy. Non-Christians and non-whites were officially discriminated against, and Muslims and other religious minorities were deported. Atheism was also illegal. The media was strictly censored, and prison slave labor was common.
The coastal states were secular and proudly multicultural. Group marriages were common. Drugs, sex, and pornography were legal, as was gambling.
Time for New North American Union to Emerge
I propose that the nations of North America reorganize into 25 new nations, which would join a common market with a common currency, common immigration, common foreign policy, and a combined military. The new nation would be called the North American Union. The new union would have its capital in New York City, which would be one of the new states. This would involve a constitutional convention that would formally dissolve the former United States and invite other nations to join together to enter into an EU-style common market, while maintaining independence and entering the United Nations as new nations.
The new nations would be:
New England, including Canadian maritime provinces and Greenland, with the capital in Boston.
New York mid-Atlantic, with the capital in New York, including the new state of Columbia incorporating DC and its suburbs. New York City would be its own city/state incorporating the entire NYC metro area, with upstate New York being its own state called Empire.
Quebec, including Maine, Louisiana, and French-speaking Caribbean islands, called New France.
Great Lakes region, including Ontario, with the capital in Chicago and Toronto, with Illinois split between Chicago and its suburbs and downstate Illinois.
Upper Midwest, including Canadian prairie states, with the capital in Omaha, allied with Christian States.
Utah, including Idaho, Montana, and Nevada, with the capital in Salt Lake City, allied with Christian States.
The South, aka the Christian States of America, with the capital in Little Rock, combined with the upper Midwestern states, totaling 30 states.
The Mountain States, including Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Montana, with the capital in New Mexico.
The Pacific Northwest, including Alaska, BC, Western Washington, Western Oregon, and Northern California, with the capital in either SF or Seattle, allied with Pacific states.
The Southwest, including Central and Southern California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Baja California, and Northern Mexico, with the capital in Los Angeles, allied with Pacific states.
The rest of Mexico, allied with Pacific states.
Central America, including Belize, Yucatán, Panamá, Colombia, and Venezuela.
Texas, including Oklahoma, with the capital in Dallas, allied with Christian States.
Caribbean States, with the capital in Miami, neutral, including English and Dutch-speaking islands and territories.
French Islands, part of New France based in Quebec.
Spanish-speaking islands, with the capital in Puerto Rico.
The Pacific Islands, including Guam, Samoa, and the PI islands, with the capital in Honolulu, allied with Pacific states.
The Native States of America, with the capital in eastern Oklahoma, consisting of the major tribal areas across North America, neutral.
Each nation would consist of mini-state governments. California would be divided into eight states: five in the Pacific Northwest and three in the Southwest. These states would be Northern California, The Bay Area, the Central Valley, the Sierras, the Northeastern area merging with eastern Oregon, eastern Washington and Idaho forming the state of Jefferson, the Desert East, Los Angeles, and San Diego, including TJ and Baja California.
In addition, the major cities would form their own states, uniting the greater metro areas into the new city states. Thus, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Seattle, LA, San Diego, NYC would be a state, Philadelphia would be a state, Washington DC would be a state called Columbia, Boston would be a state, Chicago would be a state, Miami would be a state, and Texas would be divided into five states: Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston, Austin, San Antonio, El Paso, and Oklahoma, with the rest of Texas being part of the respective substates.
Write an acrostic poem. An acrostic poem is a poem where the first letter of each line spells out a word. View an example in the announcement. This contest has a cash prize.
Back to the 19th Century
Trump wants to take over Greenland
Panama and Canada
Re-impose massive tariffs too
Back to the 19th century.
Additional Reading Recommendations per Co-PIlot AI
For more information on the new nations of America, you can find articles here:
The Bear hosts an end-of-the-year party, Pensively
New Doors Beginning
Time Crept on as 2021 Fades Away
Welcome the New Year with a Kiss
NYR goals soon forgotten
Goodbye 2022 (Say in Eight Format)
Goodby 2022 We Will not Miss You
Goodbye 2022 Good riddance, we will not miss you
2024 Year that Was In Cherito Verse Format
New Year’Wishes
The cosmic mad storm that was 2021
Help my New Year’s resolution went terribly wrong
Grim Last Few Years
Good-Bye 2021 Good Riddance
Ten Winter Haiflu *
2021 Dawns 21 Haiku **
Cosmos Cosmic Calendar ***
* published (one) in failed Haiku
** Published in Literary Yard
*** ** Published in Literary Yard
Good-Bye 2021 Good Riddance
Reflecting on the last six years
One cannot but sense
That momentous things
Were happening everywhere
2021 was worst than 2020
And the year before as well
Nonstop terrifying events
The world seems
To be spending out
Of control
2021 Year That Was
January
January normally dawns
Cold but hopeful
This year an attempted coup
Storming of the U.S. Capitol
The new president
Not accepted by the old
Half the country
Believes the big life
February
February continued
The non-stop political wars
As COVID continued
Marching across the land
March
March is not much better
March madness
Continued unabated
April
April taxes due
Other nightmares continued
COVID vaccination wars
Continued in the U.S.
COVID relief passed
May
May brings little relief
Constant political battles
Descends into madness
June
June brings no relief
People screaming none stop
As COVID deaths continue
July Economy Begins Recovery
July continues -COVID still spreading
The economy seems better
But so many people
Have checked out
August
No longer
A month off
The battles continue
September
Many people
Dread returning to school
The economy slowly opens up
Vaccination mandates
Vaccinations stalling out
October
It seemed for a bit
That perhaps COVID
Was easing up
There was some hope
In the air
Perhaps the politicians
Would finally do the right thing
Way overdue
inadequate infrastructure bill passed
Build Back Better stalled
November
The dreaded COVID
Mutates again
Mocking humanity
General Corona still
On the rampage
30 still refuse to get
A vaccination
As one thousand people
A day become Corona Ghosts
December
Travel restrictions re-emerge
COVID continues to surge
Gun violence continues unchecked
Politicians continue to play game
As too many people die
Becoming Corona ghosts
Gun violence ghosts
Drug overdoes ghosts
Accident death ghosts
The year of dread finally ends
With so many ghosts
Crying in the wind
Ten Winter Haiflu
Winter is coming
The cold season approaching
Christmas around the corner
The COVID virus
Surging everywhere it seems
Winter of our discontent
The winter rushes
2022 looms
Goodbye 2021
2021
Fading into memory
Good riddance we all proclaim
Dreading the winter
Dreading more COVID
Dreading more Corona Ghosts
Winter depression
COVID fears re-emerging
Still more travel restrictions
The winter Starting
With so many ghosts
Crying in the wind
*
Wintertime for blues
Blues playing on my YouTube
Seeing Corona Ghosts Dancing
Wintertime sadness
Recalling all who have gone
In this dismal year now past
Winter beginning
Are the end times coming?
Revelations coming true?
Dawns 21 Haiku
2021 Dawns
Politics are still uncertain.
thousands still are dying.
2021 Dawns
The New president offers.
Hope new beginning.
2021 Dawns
The Madness never ends it seems.
Consuming us all
2021 Dawns
The hope springs enterally
We will overcome.
2021 Dawns
35,000 lies.
Fading like ghosts
2021 Dawns
Politicians still lying.
Thousands still dying.
2021 Dawns
Corona virus spreading
More corona ghosts.
2021 Dawns
There is New hope in the air.
Will politics kill it?
2021 Dawns
The news stills scream death and despair.
I turn it all off
2021 Dawns
As I wake up at dawn
I see my sleeping wife.
2021 Dawns
We wait for the coming fires.
End of the world fears
2021 Dawns
Q continues to spread hate.
Millions still follow him.
2021 Dawns
Will optimism and love?
Overcome the hate.
2021 Dawns
Many questions still remaining.
I have no answers.
2021 Dawns
With hope I leap out of my bed
Watching TV kills hope
2021 Dawns
Will this be the end of my days?
Will I overcome it?
2021 Dawns
2020 hangover
Like a dark nightmare
2021 Dawns
Politicians still refusing.
To do anything
2021 Dawns
The rich are still getting richer.
The poor remain poor.
2021 Dawns
We hope the past will fade away.
Into dark memories
2021 Dawns
I wake up hoping for best.
Dreading worst to come
2021 Dawns
I am still alive thank God.
Filled with loved for wife.
###
There is a great sense of unrest.
There is a great sense.
Of unrest in the land today
Madness in the air
Dear Republicans What is Wrong with you?
Dear Republicans
What is wrong with you?
The former president
Incited a riot.
Stormed the house.
Would have killed you.
If they could have
And you still defend.
The former president
Refusing to hold him to account?
Do you really want him?
Running around starting the patriot party
Launching a jihad against you?
When you can remove him
From the game
And send him home.
For good
What the hell is wrong with you
Just do your job
Put a stake.
Through that vampire’s heart
Kill Trumpism.
Before it kills you
###
The Revolution Next Time
A revolution is brewing.
On the right
And on the left
As madness descends on the land
Incited by rightwing political leaders.
Inciting riots and rebellion
Demanding action
Against their enemies
While on the left
Revolution is brewing as well.
Soon will they unite?
To march down
Tearing down democracy
As our leaders
Play games.
As the world descends
Into chaos
And the US becomes
Another failed state
Until a proverbial man
On a white horse
Rides into save us.
From ourselves?
The revolution next time
Will not be pretty.
As everything burns
And America dies
###
Zombie Ideas Do Not Die
Zombie Ideas
Do not die.
They linger on
In our collective minds
Infecting our politics
Among my favorites
Are the canard.
That tax cuts will solve all problems.
That deregulation will free up business.
That the free market will solve our problems
That the government is the problem
And we must starve the government.
Of funds
So, it can do no more harm.
To our great country
These and other pernicious
Fact free alternative facts
Are spread far and wide.
Across the right-wing media sphere
Infecting our politicians
Leading them to playing games
Instead of coming together.
To solve our collective problems
And now the Republicans are saying.
In the midst of the worst epidemic in history
With the US economy slipping into great depression era
The US cannot afford to spend any more money.
On combatting the pandemic
That the Federal government has done enough
It is up to the states to solve their problem.
Because of deficit spending
Which they did not care about
Before the change in command
Now the federal government is broke.
But we cannot ask the billionaire class.
To pay a dime more in taxes
In fact, we need to cut taxes more.
So, we go.
These zombie ideas
Mutating and spreading
Infecting our politics
With madness
Making it impossible to govern
As things fall apart
Let us put a Death.
to zombie ideas
Put a stake through them.
Opening up the truth
Coming together
To do the people’s business
That is what we must all do.
2024 Year that Was In Cherito Verse Format
January
Very cold weather
Trump way ahead
Democrats panicking
Things progressing at home
Daily writing
Daily piano playing
February
Stayed low
Hibernating the winter way
Cold weather
Politics unsettled
Constant turmoil
Trump nails the republican race.
March
Cold and blistering weather
Unsettled times
Doctos on strike
Angela’s indoscopy
Everything is on track
We are in good shape.
April
Went to Japan
Earthquake
blasted us awake
Finished tour
Returned home to Korea
Doctor’s strike continuing.
May
Returned to Oregon
Started renovations
Went to DC
Returned
Renovations proceeding
And AIRBNB as well.
June
Big turmoil
Debate showed Biden was out of it
Trump came off as Trumpian
Shocking news Biden steps down
Harris rushes to replace him
Wondering will it be enough?
July
What a month
Democrats and Republican conventions
What a contrast
Watched Olympics
And the conventions.
Went to the gym daily
Getting ready for the reunion blues.
August
Hot weather in Medford
Political turmoil
Far Far away in DC
Renovations continuing project
Almost finished.
Went to gym every day
September
I watched the big debate
with God’s podcaster’s commentary.
Trump acting crazy, talking shit about pet-eating Haitians.
But no knockout blow
So election drama continues.
Renovations are finishing up.
October
Constant turmoil.
Finished renovations in Medford.,
Who is ahead? who is behind?
Celebrated 69 birthday, won 250 dollars in Indian Casino.
Returned home for BHS HS reunion, I met my first girlfriend there.
50 years after graduation, still got it going on.
November
Shocking election results
Democrats fought hard
But in the end, they came up short.
Political chaos ensures
Game blaming continues unabated
Had a nice Thanksgiving in Medford.
December
Political chaos
Political chaos continues
In Korea short-term martial law
President Impeached
Chaos in US
Nice to be back home
Note on form
The cherito form is a Malaysian verse form
Six lines
One line
Two lines
Three lines
Tells a complete story
Here I start with big picture events
Then end with personal note
End of the year Wishes
At the end of the year,
2021 came and went.
Time crept on.
The past fading into memories.
Time marching on
Into the future.
2022 dawning.
With hope and fear
Dreading the future,
We anticipate
The coming New Year,
Hoping it will be better
Then that horrific freak show
That was 2021.
January arrives cold as death warmed over
As I make my annual list of resolutions
Of the great things I would do
The lies I tell myself to keep me going
While recovering from the hangover of the year before
With regrets for the evitable passing of time itself
And snow bound cold nights of wild passion
As we delay death’s knocking on the door
February
February is a strange month
Cold, short and eventful
In the U.S. The political season heats up
As politicians rush about
Making their campaign lies
Full of promises of things to come
As we the 99 % huddle down inside
Watching the lies on TV
Outside Winter’s last dying breath
March
March roars in full of sound and furry
Signifying the future marching down upon us all
And March madness hits the sports world
And politicians meet to plot and scheme
As we bravely battle the cosmic elements
Waiting for the promised spring
Hay fever greets me
With the early spring flowers
April
April is indeed the cruelest month of all
So many important events occurred
Kim Il Sung’s Birthday, Hitler’s Birthday
And in the U.S. the dreaded tax man cometh
To take it all away as the flowers overwhelm
And Spring Fever takes hold
Driving us all mad
With strange erotic desires
May
May is in many ways
My second favorite month of all
The flowers are blooming bright
The mountains are aflame with desire
The summer heat is coming
The plans for the year are coming along
The political campaigns heat up
And good movies come out
Star wars arrived
Spider man and superman and batman
All came out to play
In late May
And baseball begins in earnest
And most importantly
My wife was born
June
June is always a month of transition
End of the school year
Summer transfer season
People leaving people coming
Hurricanes and Tornados attacking
And wars starting and people dying
As fire flies buzz about
And rabbits eat my garden
As the summer heat descends upon the land
I walk late at night
Recalling that Watergate
Occurred in June
July
July is the queen of the summer season
As she heats up the land
Throwing storm after summer storm
And politicians run away
After the July forth fireworks
Man landed on the moon
Richard Nixon Left the White House
And we all know that half the year
Has flown by
August
So much has happened
During the hottest most hellish of months
Despite the summer sauna that descends upon the land
Enervating all driving people mad with the heat
World War 1 started
World War 11 ended
Hiroshima ushered in the nuclear age
Hurricanes Katrina and Harvey
And tornado ally
All roar down upon the land
And I met the love of my life
Getting off a bus
One August evening
September
What can one say about September
Like June a month of transitions
And one is filled with ambition
Wanting to finish up what one started
Before the fall arrives
And Winter is hinting it is coming
School starts
New jobs start
New people come into one’s life
And like August’s hangover
Big earth shattering events happen
The fall of the stock market
The housing bubble bursting
The endless budget games
As the politicians argue
Whether to bankrupt the country
To make a political point or two
And 9-11 terrorizing the world
All September’s gifts to the land
October
October is my favorite month of all
The leaves turn
The weather is usually delightful
Just a tease of the coming winter
Fall ball season underway
Baseball games and Halloween madness
ends the month with a huge bang
And I celebrate my legal birth on the 29th
Also the day I legally got married
And on the October 30 1955 I was born
And Rock n Roll was born as well
Coincidence I think not
November
November is one of the strange months
Begins like a hangover of October
Then it turns ugly and weird
Political fever hits the land
Every two years
As the people brave the early November chill
To decide what fools they will send to DC
The politicians lie and scheme and plot
And beg and lie again
And the world turns
And the new leaders emerge
Welcome the new Bosses
Same as the old bosses
Just new packaging
And Donald Trump storms the barricades
Threatening the establishment’s strangle hold
On America and the world
Yes November is a strange month
December
Perhaps the loneliness month of all
The most consequential of all the months
And yet also the most depressing end of time
Kind of month
If the apocalypse zombie or otherwise
Were to occur
It would be in December
That is the sort of insane month it is
The end of the year
As darkness settles down on the land
And holiday parties abound
Full of false cheer
And faked love
And for those who don’t celebrate Christmas
A lonely day perhaps at the movies
A few awkward calls to the relatives
Then New Years
Watching the world end
Drinking up a storm
And knowing that the year ended
And you are one step closer to the grave
I have thought about the Israel-Palestinian conflict for a long time. I have never been to the region and have no professional expertise as my professional expertise has always been in East Asia.
I believe that the impasse is largely caused by the right-wing in Israel which refuses to seriously negotiate a viable Palestinian state, the refusal of Hamas and the Palestinian Authority to recognize Israel’s right to exist, and Iranian malign influence and support of Hamas.
Having said that here are some of my comments on the Middle East including a proposal for a new way of thinking about the issue. The bottom line is simply this at some point both the Israelis and the Palestinians will tire of the endless wars and reach a settlement.
I propose a four-state solution = a Transjordan federation consisting of Israel, Palestine (with a land bridge linking Gaza and the West Bank) Jordan, and Jerusalem which will serve as the federation capital as well as the capital of both Israel and Palestinian states. The following letter to President Trump outlines my proposal.
Middle East War Choka
watching morning news
war in the middle east
congressional breakdown
drinking my coffee
transfixed watching the war.
both sides blame each other
will peace ever come?
hard to see beyond hate.
Neither can get beyond that.
in the end, they must
embrace two-state solution.
many will die before then.
Dear President Trump
I am retired U.S. State Department foreign service officer. I never served in the Middle East but volunteered to go to Yemen and I have been following the mid-east peace process for decades. Here are my suggestions for a way forward. I hope you can consider them.
Convene another Camp David Peace conference but invite Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, UAE and Syria to the conference as well as Israel and Palestine.
Suggest that the trans-Jordan countries form the Confederate States of the Trans Jordon and have that state be the successor state to Israel, Palestine, and Jordan, and include Jerusalem as a separate state.
Announce that the Trans Jordon Federation would recognize Islam, Christianity, and Judaism as official religions with state support, but individuals would be free to practice any religion or no religion.
Announce that the Federation Capitol would be Jerusalem, which will also be the capital of Israel, and Palestine, the Jordanian capital would remain in Aman.
Jews and Palestinians would have the right to return. A special land claims court would judge land disputes.
There would be a common market, a common currency, a joint military, and a federal government plus four State governments.
Schools would teach Arabic Hebrew and English. The schools would though be either Arabic, Hebrew, or English (international school). The universities would mostly teach in English for the benefit of international students which would make up to 25% of the student body.
All government documents would be published in Arabic, Hebrew, and English. Government business would be conducted in Arabic, Hebrew, and English.
Three years of public service will be required from age 18 to age 26 with each year a certain percentage being drafted. Most would serve in the military but some would do alternative service in Federal, state, or local government service. The terms of service could be extended once to a maximum of six years. All training programs would provide college credit.
Officers would serve their basic service and then be admitted to the military training program or a ROTC program. Same thing for NCOs.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq would immediately recognize the new state. Iran would explicitly recognize the right of Israel to exist.
The new state would take over the Israeli, and Jordanian seats at the UN and international organizations.
The Federal government would consist of a president and three vice presidents. Either the President or vice President would be from Israel, the other vice presidents would be from Jordan, Palestine, or Jerusalem. At the first presidential election, the decision would be made on a random basis on which state the President must come from, they must either be an Israeli or a Jordanian, Palestinian, or Jerusalem citizen. Then the next election the presidency would rotate until an Israel, Palestine, and Jerusalem person has served as President the cycle would repeat. The national assembly would have reserved seats for each of the four states with 50 percent reserved for Israel, and 50 percent reserved for the other states. The President and National Assembly would serve single six-year terms with one re-election permitted.
Israel would offer a land swap with Palestine. Israel would create a land bridge to the Gaza Strip and expand the Gaza Strip to become the port and airport for the Palestinian state. Israel would give up 10 to 20 percent of their land, as would Palestine. The settlements will be frozen but would be considered to part of the new Palestinian state, but with considerable local autonomy, including having Hebrew language public schools.
it seems to me that the North Korean regime could fall apart any day now. It is perhaps in the end of its life like in Syria the end could happen within weeks. The South Korean government should be better prepared for reunification. Here is my modest proposal for a reunified Korean State.
Once it is obvious that reunification will become a reality the South Korean government should propose setting up a new capitol called New Hangsang, an updated name of the South Korean capitol. The new capital city should be built between Kaesong and Musan and centered on Panmumjom the border peace village. , the Korean government must move the capital city 100 percent to Hangsang.
Along with that, all the diplomatic and international missions, schools, and hospitals should also be relocated into a new diplomatic quarter to be built next to the foreign ministry, the Presidential office, and the National Assembly perhaps to the northern side of the city. There should be a firm and irreversible deadline of five years to transition to the new capital.
The capitol should have a new name, perhaps Hangsang the old name of Seoul. The government should also announce that the new city will be a supersmart city along the lines of the Neomi City being built in Saudi Arabia. Every building should have solar panels, wind turbines, and water harvesting systems. A tidal power station should be built near Gangwha harbor to provide convenient inexpensive extra electricity. The new capitol will be linked via high speed trains, and freeways to Seoul which will remain the commercial and cultural capitol of Korea and Pyeongyang which will be commercial capitol for the Northern regions of Korea and high speed train and highways to Incheon and Pyeongyang airports. The high speed GTX trains will feed into the existing metro lines of Seoul, Incheon and Pyeongyang. In addition, Ganghwa Island and Yeongcheon islands could be developed into something equivalent to the Hamptons of NYC – a weekend get away retreat for the elite of the country.
The new nation would be organized along a federal system with provincial governments having considerable autonomy with provincial status given to the major cities including the new capitol city. There would have to be a transitional period announced but within two years the newly unified Korean Federation should be launched. US troops could and should continued to be based in Camp Humphrey but the total number of troops should be reduced in half perhaps.
The diplomatic quarter should be built in consultation with foreign missions. Each compound should have its main buildings, housing, commissary, recreational facilities, and a cultural center complete with a restaurant highlighting the cuisine of the country. The cultural centers would be open to the public with frequent concerts, art exhibits, lectures, and meetings and also contain a library and a language school open to the public. The diplomatic quarter should be located in Kaesong. Foreign missions could have consulate and cultural centers in Pyeongyang, Seoul, Daegu and Busan.
The Korean University of Foreign Studies, (Waedae) should move to the diplomatic compound with diplomatic spouses being offered to adjust professorships where appropriate. The university should also offer diplomatic training to Korean government diplomats and intelligence community personnel as well as to diplomatic personnel where appropriate. And diplomatic family members should be given scholarships to attend the University. The Seoul Foreign School, and international school should also relocate to the diplomatic quarter. Seoul National University international hospital and Yonsei international hospital should either move or open branch hospitals in the quarter.
For diplomats, this will be a dream assignment – with no commute at all, housing on-site, commissary and restaurant on site, as well as everything being extremely walkable or a short subway ride away and Seoul would be less than an hour away by high-speed train as well as the US military camp at Camp Humphreys, and good paying positions for diplomatic spouses at the university and foreign schools.
The Korean government should set up a high-level planning committee chaired by the Prime Minister, to oversee the development of the new city. They should send a team to those countries that have dual capitals such as Australia, Cameroon, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nigeria, South Africa, and the United States. They should also visit the top smart cities in the world Neomi, Singapore, and Songdo. The committee would then take the lessons learned on their study mission to guide the development of the new capitol city.
Seoul and DC opened their subways in 1974. I rode both for the first time in 1979, when each had about five or six stations on one line. What a difference 45 years has made. Seoul has built a world-class subway system with over 23 lines and 600 stations stretching over 200 miles, and is now the largest urban train system in the world, while DC has built five lines and many consider it to be among the worst subway systems in the world. I have been riding both ever since, and I love the Seoul Metro. I’m glad it has become one of the best subways in the world, but I am very disappointed at the deterioration of the DC subway system.
Seoul: A World-Class System in 45 Years
Since opening in 1974, the Seoul city subway has grown to be the biggest subway system in the world, with 23 lines and over 500 stations stretching over 200 miles The total length is approximately 975.4 km (606.1 miles). It connects many outlying cities as part of one integrated mass transit system. It is fast, efficient, cheap, and safe. Most people in the Seoul metro area live within half a mile of a station.
There are five more lines being planned and built. By 2025, there will be over 600 stations. They are building three lines of express trains buried deep underground called the GTX system. The first line has opened, and the other two lines will be operational by 2028. When finished, one will be able to travel from one part of Seoul to another within 30 minutes. The second line opens December 28, 2024 and another line opens next Spring.
The system takes in an annual revenue of $2.6 billion. The total ridership is approximately 2.9 billion passengers annually, with about 7.32 million passengers per day. Signs and all announcements are in Korean, English, Chinese and Japanese. Each subway station has a TV screen for stop announcements Fare machines operate in four languages as well. The cost is modest, about $1 per ride, payable by T money cards, credit card, or phone app.
Subway attendants speak some English and are very helpful and friendly. Every subway stop has clean restrooms, services, and restaurants, with some stations featuring long underground shopping malls. The metro system makes so much money from renting shops, services, and advertising that fares are heavily subsidized. The trains are very clean, safe, and well-maintained. Foreign visitors love the system and use it frequently as it is quite foreigner-friendly. Ridership at night is strong due to strict drunk driving laws.
DC Metro: A Broken System
In contrast, the DC Metro has five lines and about 125 stations. It is finally connected to Dulles Airport years after first planning to extend to the airport. The system was planned to be a model of modern urban transit, but it has faced numerous challenges over the years, including crime concerns, derailments, financial difficulties, maintenance issues, reliability concerns, and does not connect to many employment and shopping destinations, especially in the suburban areas.
The DC Metro’s ridership has declined, and it struggles with crime, financial issues, maintenance issues, reliability, and safety issues. The system’s infrastructure is aging, and there have been several high-profile incidents that have eroded public confidence. The fare system is more expensive compared to Seoul, and the service is less frequent and less reliable. and there is no restroom service available on the train system. The train stations are dimply lit, the public address system does not work. But on the bright side, the attendants are generally helpful.
The DC Metro’s annual operating budget is around $4.8 billion, but it still faces financial challenges. The system relies heavily on fare revenue, which has been declining. In contrast, Seoul’s metro system is heavily subsidized by revenue from renting shops, services, and advertising, making it more affordable for passengers.
Expand or Die
A Tale of Two Metros
.The system needs to be expanded to Ft Belvoir, Richmond and Quantico in Virgina and Baltimore in Maryland adding 20 to 25 new stations, and a new Potomac train bridge needs to be built. The Metro system should consider setting up a high speed Maglev train linking Richmond, DC and Baltimore/Philadelphia. The technology exists to set up such a system.
The contrast between the Seoul and DC metro systems is stark. Seoul has built a world-class, efficient, and user-friendly metro system that serves as a model for other cities. Meanwhile, the DC Metro has struggled with crime, financial issues, maintenance, reliability, and safety leading to a decline in ridership and public confidence. and it does not go to many major employment and shopping districts in the suburbs.
To improve the DC Metro, there needs to be a focus on modernizing infrastructure, improving safety and reliability, and finding alternative revenue sources to reduce the reliance on fare revenue. Learning from Seoul’s success could provide valuable insights into how to turn around the DC Metro and make it a system that residents can be proud of
One factor people consider when looking for a new home is how easy it is to get around. Driving and walking are the most common modes of transportation, but prospective buyers and renters are also increasingly considering public transportation.
In 2018, only 30% of buyers said a new home’s proximity to public transit was “very important” or “extremely important,” according to the 2023 Zillow Consumer Housing Trends Report. But in 2023, 43% said so — the largest increase of any neighborhood characteristic. Thirty-seven percent of renters said living near public transportation was “very important” or “extremely important,” the highest level in the past six years. While many people may want to be close to public transit for career purposes, the benefits may extend beyond work.
“Living near public transportation is more important to today’s buyers and renters than it’s been in at least the past several years. Still, it’s likely not the deciding factor for many movers — more say living in a walkable neighborhood, living near leisure amenities and living near family are important to them,” Zillow senior economist Nicole Bachaud told ConsumerAffairs.
“While the importance of living near public transportation has been on an upswing for homebuyers, the importance of commute times has stayed relatively steady. That could indicate buyers are interested in public transit for more than just their trips to the office and back.”
Knowing how you’ll get around your new hometown is vital before hiring movers to take you there. To help, the ConsumerAffairs Research Team investigated and ranked the nation’s 50 largest cities to see which have the best public transit systems. The analysis is based on 2022 data from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Transit Database, and it takes into account how useful, safe, affordable and efficient transit services are in the nation’s top cities.
Bigger isn’t always better. While the country’s most populous metro area, New York City, had the highest-scoring transit system, second place went to the much smaller San Francisco metro area.
Only three of the top 10 transit systems are in the nation’s top 10 most populous cities.
Good transit spans the country.
Among large cities, the top 20 for transit include locations on the Atlantic and Pacific Coasts, the South, the Mountain West, the Midwest and along the Great Lakes.
Transit is safe. The average rate of major safety events across the 50 largest U.S. cities’ transit systems is 3 per 1 million miles traveled by transit vehicles.
Transit is affordable. The average transit trip in the nation’s largest cities costs $2.56 one way, even when accounting for varying prices by distance, peak hours and monthly passes.
Some advantages of public transit systems include their eco-friendliness, shorter commute times and connectability. Transit vehicles emit far fewer greenhouse gases per passenger mile than a regular car, and you don’t have to fight traffic yourself or pay for parking at your destination. Transit lines also usually connect, making longer trips possible, such as weekend getaways.
Personal advantages abound, too. Riding on local public transit can allow you to see diverse neighborhoods and meet other people you share the city with. Relieved from driving, you can also rest, read or otherwise relax during the journey.
Artificial intelligence can also make public transit systems more efficient and save riders time by analyzing different routes and schedules to get you to your destination faster and without as much of a hassle.
A 2020 report from the International Association of Public Transport found AI offers the potential to adjust transit services in real time, responding to heavy traffic, heavy ridership and sudden emergencies. The report found that AI systems can also help users plan journeys that combine multiple stops and interconnecting services and adapt fares to meet specific goals for both revenue and equity. They can also save agencies money by optimizing fuel efficiency and maintenance services.
Since that report came out, the U.S. federal government has spent millions of dollars helping transit agencies around the country develop AI systems that aim to improve service, reliability and cost in transit systems. The starting point for many of the nation’s most populous cities is already quite good — but there is still much room for improvement everywhere.
Here’s how the cities stacked up:
New York, New York
Annual public transit trips per metro area resident: 144.2
Share of stations ADA-compliant: 51.4%
Safety score (combining fatalities and serious injuries): 13.07 out of 20
Average fare revenue per trip: $1.75
The nation’s most populous metro area is served by a large number of transit agencies, with trains and buses covering the five boroughs of New York City itself, as well as areas well into New Jersey, Connecticut and downstate New York. While the average fare revenue is higher than most, it’s still cheaper per trip than in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Buffalo, New York.
San Francisco, California
Annual public transit trips per metro area resident: 53.6
Share of stations ADA-compliant: 97%
Safety score (combining fatalities and serious injuries): 13.91 out of 20
Average fare revenue per one-way trip: $1.63
With the third-worst commuter traffic in the nation, San Francisco residents might be desperate for other ways to get around. Fortunately, Bay Area Rapid Transit connects the city with its suburbs, and the Muni bus and train system – including the city’s famous cable cars – gets people around the city itself. There are also free shuttles to get people to and from public parks.
Los Angeles, California
Annual public transit trips per metro area resident: 29
Share of stations ADA-compliant: 100%
Safety score (combining fatalities and serious injuries): 16.48 out of 20
Average fare revenue per one-way trip: 49 cents
Los Angeles, well known as a sprawling car-oriented metropolis, has a transit system that doesn’t get as much use per capita as other cities’ services. However, it’s one of the safest and most affordable transit systems nationwide.
Richmond, Virginia
Annual public transit trips per metro area resident: 8.5
Share of stations ADA-compliant: 100%
Safety score (combining fatalities and serious injuries): 18.27 out of 20
Average fare revenue per one-way trip: 24 cents
With free local bus fares across the city, including high-speed buses with some dedicated lanes that provide service every 10 minutes on weekdays and every 15 minutes on weekends, Richmond’s public transit system is safer and more efficient than many other large cities’ services. Unfortunately, it is used less frequently than any other system mentioned in our top 10 list.
San Diego, California
Annual public transit trips per metro area resident: 21
Share of stations ADA-compliant: 100%
Safety score (combining fatalities and serious injuries): 14.74 out of 20
Annual public transit trips per metro area resident: 12.6
Share of stations ADA-compliant: 100%
Safety score (combining fatalities and serious injuries): 18.44 out of 20
Average fare revenue per one-way trip: 58 cents
San Antonio’s bus service spans the city and is set to expand in the coming years. The agency that runs it, VIA Metropolitan Transit, is also working to make its service schedules and maps more comprehensible to prospective users. The city is also considering new zoning rules that would make denser housing along high-capacity bus lines easier for developers to build.
Boston, Massachusetts
Annual public transit trips per metro area resident: 47.5
Share of stations ADA-compliant: 78%
Safety score (combining fatalities and serious injuries): 14.57 out of 20
Average fare revenue per one-way trip: $1.63
In Boston, a city well known for confounding even local drivers with one-way streets and hairpin turns, it’s tempting to let someone else handle navigation. Even with a relatively expensive average fare and incomplete ADA compliance at stations, the city’s MBTA trains and buses are relied on more heavily than transit vehicles in other large cities.
Seattle, Washington
Annual public transit trips per metro area resident: 36.7
Share of stations ADA-compliant: 99.1%
Safety score (combining fatalities and serious injuries): 14.52 out of 20
Average fare revenue per one-way trip: $1.57
Seattle’s public transit system, which includes buses, trains, and ferries, links its suburbs, downtown area and nearby islands. In 2024, the city is asking voters to raise their taxes to pay for a 20-year transportation plan that includes pothole repair and expanded transit services.
Washington, D.C.
Annual public transit trips per metro area resident: 36.7
Share of stations ADA-compliant: 100%
Safety score (combining fatalities and serious injuries): 15.41 out of 20
Average fare revenue per one-way trip: $1.29
The D.C. area’s roads are so famously congested that people joke there is no rush hour at all — except all the time. Fortunately, the Metro system encompasses trains, buses and subways run by city officials and state and local agencies in neighboring Maryland and Virginia.
Salt Lake City, Utah
Annual public transit trips per metro area resident: 26.7
Share of stations ADA-compliant: 100%
Safety score (combining fatalities and serious injuries): 11.83 out of 20
Average fare revenue per one-way trip: $1.07
Bus and rail lines crisscross the city and the surrounding county. The city’s plans for transit expansion call for additional services by 2030 and are being used to tempt Olympic officials to consider it as a location for the 2034 Winter Games.
In this study, we examined a range of data points from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Transit Database and calculated a score for each city, with a maximum number of 100 points achievable. You can read the full methodology below.
Why you should consider moving to a city with a good public transit system
When you’re looking for your next place to live — whether near where you already call home or somewhere farther afield — it’s worth noting how close transit services are and how well they’ll get you where you want to go.
According to Nicholas Julian, the senior program manager for land use at the National Association of Home Builders, builders and developers are noticing this interest. He observed that the move toward “transit-oriented development” has been decades in the making, with governments and private companies working to build housing along existing transit routes to reduce traffic and pollution.
He noted that many cities are also rethinking minimum parking requirements to reflect residents’ desire to drive less and discourage additional cars from clogging the roads.
Although Julian works most directly with people involved in suburban development projects not designed explicitly around transit, he notes that “any type of access to public transit … will be advertised” to prospective buyers or renters.
He pointed out that some developers are stepping forward to reduce driving while improving people’s ability to get the services and experiences they want. For example, Culdesac Tempe, in Arizona, is a development that actively discourages residents from owning cars while providing free transit, reduced ride-sharing costs and free e-bikes to at least some residents.
“If you can build a car-free community in Tempe, it’s probably possible just about anywhere,” Julian said. That may also mean you can live a car-free or car-light lifestyle in just about any other city, too.
Methodology
The ConsumerAffairs Research Team conducted a comprehensive analysis of the public transit systems in the 50 most populous metropolitan areas across the United States and scored each on a point scale from zero to 100. To determine which cities had the best public transportation, we looked at the following metrics:
Usefulness to riders: We defined how useful a transit system was to its city’s residents based on three factors:
First, we calculated how many independent passenger trips the population took in 2022 in relation to the metro area’s population. This information was based on the National Transit Database annual metrics for 2022. (25 possible points)
Second, we calculated how far passengers traveled in 2022 per resident in the metro area. (20 possible points)
Third, we looked at how easy the main public transit system was to access for people with physical disabilities. We used the 2022 National Transit Database information on transit stations to calculate the percentage of all ADA-compliant systems. (10 possible points)
Safety: Based on the National Transit Database’s Safety & Security Major Event Time Series data for 2022, we calculated the number of major events, including collisions and derailments, per vehicle revenue mile in 2022. (10 possible points)
We also calculated the rate of fatalities and injuries in major events per 2022 vehicle revenue mile. (5 possible points each)
Because in DC, and the US generally, you can’t build without going through 10 committees, years of public input, and half a dozen lawsuits. Metro was originally built via cut and cover which is cheaper and much faster, but today that would never be allowed because people go ballistic over traffic. You can’t do infill stations because god forbid anything anywhere changes or disrupts “neighborhood character”. Unless DC prioritizes transit over cars it won’t get better.
Tasteful portrait of a pre-op transgender woman with long brown hair and no make-up.
With Trump’s Election, the Republican led War on the LGBTQ community will continue. Rep. Nancy Mace vowed to ensure that the only trans woman ever elected will not be allowed to use the woman’s bathroom in the People’s House. She even went around putting up signs in front of restrooms “Biological Women only” vowing she would not allow women with Penises to use the woman’s room. Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Defense has vowed to kick trans people out of the military. Trump has pulled back a bit, now says he does not want to weight in on bathroom bans as it only affects a few people. But the LGBTQ community is feeling the pressure and is afraid that the war against them will continue.
This is personal for me as I have had several trans friends over the years, one of my college roommate transited from a man to a lesbian woman, another friend transitioned from a woman into a man.
Here are some recent articles on this topic.
Getting rid of the LGBTQ Community
by legal fiat
the MAGA movement leaders
the cynical overlords behind Trump
have a plan to get rid of the trans community
and the LGBTQ Community
by legal fiat
their plans spelled out in the infamous
Project 2025 and Agenda 47
and speeches by Trump and Vance
and their craven fellow travelers
Declaring that there are only two genders
God assigned male and Female at birth.
Banning sex reassignment and changing IDs
Banning people from using the bathroom
of their choice
making using the wrong restroom
a federal sex crime
Enforced by citizen arrests
no doubt some people
will settle these disputes
through their Second Amendment rights.
the craven Supreme Court will no doubt
accept their claim they felt threatened
by a trans person using the wrong restroom.
banning biological males from
participating in women’s sports.
Just like that, there would
There would no longer
be trans people.
firing LGBTQ people
from sensitive government jobs
turning it back to the states
to make such status illegal again
And gay marriage would be illegal.
Putting the LGBTQ community
back in the closet
or forcing them to flee
to more LGBTQ countries.
Banning abortions nationwide
banning contraception too
banning porno and sex education
and making most divorces
illegal,
thus restoring the power
of the white man
to rule forever
just as God intended.
LGBTQ+ Americans stockpile meds and make plans to move after Trump’s win
Zoei Montgomery, a 25-year-old transgender woman, is preparing for Donald Trump’s second term by stockpiling medicines in case her access is cut off. (Annabel Clark for The Washington Post)
Zoei Montgomery is so nervous about Donald Trump’s second presidency that she is making plans to escape to Canada if life in the United States becomes intolerable for her as a transgender woman.
The middle-school custodian fears that the incoming president will follow the lead of Republican governors who have restricted access to gender-affirming care and made it illegal for people to change their gender markers on official documents.
“I would hate to leave home,” said Montgomery, 25, who lives in Washington state. “But it makes me less anxious to have an exit plan in place.”
As Trump’s inauguration nears, some LGBTQ+ people are anxiously preparing for what they fear will be a rollback of their rights. Some in same-sex relationships are making plans to marry or to adopt children. Others are moving to states that they believe will offer them more protection. Transgender people are stockpiling medications, worried that their access to gender transition care will be cut off.
Trump has vowed to prohibit gender transition care for children and eliminate any federal spending on those treatments for adults. He has also promised to ask Congress to pass a bill stating that there are only two genders and that they are assigned at birth. And the incoming president wants to use Title IX protections to ensure that transgender women can’t play on women’s sports teams.
Anti-trans bills have doubled since 2022. Our map shows where states stand.
While some of his promises would be difficult to enact, and many others such as banning access to health care probablywouldbe challenged in court, Trump will have the advantage of Republican controlin Congress and could also enact some changes through executive action.
Trump’s transition team hasn’t provided further details on his plans, but a spokeswoman for the incoming administration said his campaign focused on “common sense policies” that Americans want.
🏛️
“Clearly, the American people agree with President Trump and that’s why they voted for him in a landslide,” spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said.
A survey conducted by Fox News and the Associated Press found that about 55 percent of voters said support for transgender rights in government and society “has gone too far,” and that 77 percent of this group supported Trump.
The survey also found that 51 percent of voters opposed laws banning gender-affirming medical treatment such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy for transgender youths. Among those who do support the ban, 65 percent supported Trump.
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court’s conservative majority appeared reluctant to block a Tennessee law restricting transgender minors from accessing puberty blockers and hormones as part of their gender transition care. The ruling will affect thousands of transgender youths who live in one of the 24 states, including Tennessee, that have banned similar treatments.
Trans rights were far from the top issue for many voters this election, said Republican pollster Robert Blizzard, but the topic was an animating force for some. Swing-state voters, he said, were angry with Democrats who they said pushed “trans ideology” onto children.
Blizzard, who did not do polling work for the Trump campaign, said voters were worried about children.
“That’s a big concern for a lot of folks across the country, minors making decisions that will change their lives and bodies long-term.”
Michele Zavos, a D.C.-based attorney specializing in LGBTQ+ family law, said it’s a “very complicated time” for the community.
“Rights that we thought were resolved seem to once again be at risk,” she said.
Even before Trump won the presidency, LGBTQ+ people had endured several tumultuous years. Republican lawmakers in statehouses and the U.S. Capitol have introduced a record number of bills aimed at restricting LGBTQ+ rights under President Joe Biden. Schools in Florida and North Carolina have fired gay teachers. Trans children have lost access to health care they describe as lifesaving. And Republicans spent at least $215 million on election ads that painted trans people as the nation’s most pressing threat.
In the initial weeks after the election, LGBTQ+ people and advocacy groups say some of their worst fears are already coming true. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-South Carolina) introduced a measure to bar trans women from women’s bathrooms in the Capitol and all other federal properties two weeks after Sarah McBride (D-Delaware) was elected the nation’s first transgender member of Congress.
Many of Trump’s Cabinet picks have also endorsed anti-trans policies.
Former Hawaii congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, the president-elect’s pick for director of national intelligence, introduced a bill in 2020 to prohibit trans women from playing on women’s sports teams. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida), Trump’s choicefor secretary of state, introduced a bill in 2023 to ban anyone with a history of gender dysphoria from the U.S. military. And South Dakota Gov. Kristi L. Noem (R), selectedto head the Department of Homeland Security, signed a ban on gender-affirming health care for trans youths last year.
Montgomerysaid she has been stockpiling estradiol and spironolactone pills since September. She now has enough to last her a few weeks if federal lawmakers banned her care, she said.
“Many people around me are acting like everything is the same since Nov. 5,” she said. “But nothing will be the same for the LGBTQ+ community once Trump’s in power, and he has promised that.”
‘Building a raft on a tsunami’
When Trump first won office in 2016, the LGBTQ+ community was celebrating several milestone victories. The Supreme Court had granted same-sex couples the right to marry the year before, and not long after, President Barack Obama directed schools across the country to allow transgender students to use bathrooms, locker rooms and other facilities that match their gender identity.
But some of those wins were quickly changed when Trump took office. Within a month of his inauguration, Trump revoked the Obama-era guidelines on transgender students. He also ordered the Pentagon to ban transgender service members from the military.
Later on, under Biden, GOP state lawmakers began targeting a range of things, such as LGBTQ+-friendly books in public schools and gender-affirming care for children. So far, 26 states have banned trans girls and women from playing on sports teams that align with their gender identity.
Then came this year’s presidential campaign. Candidates across the country ran more than 200 anti-trans ads on network TV, according to a Washington Post analysis of data compiled by AdImpact. Trump’s super PACs spent at least $50 million on anti-trans ads, and his campaign made “Kamala is for they/them” a reelection slogan.
“There’s a lot of general fear, panic and hopelessness in the community,” said Janson Wu, a senior director at the Trevor Project, a nonprofit that provides support to LGBTQ+ youths aimed at suicide prevention and crisis intervention.
“Many people, especially the younger ones, are wondering if they can continue living under these political attacks.”
While some queer and trans families did flee to more LGBTQ+-friendly states during the Biden years, others couldn’t afford to move, or didn’t want to, even as new laws restrictedtheir rights. Now, nonprofit workers say they are hearing from a record number of people who want to relocate to liberal states with explicit protections for gay and trans people.
Keira Richards and a group of friends have been helping people move to Colorado since last year. Normally, their nonprofit, theTrans Continental Pipeline, works with an average of 15 people a month. In the week after the election, Richards said, 350 people contacted the group to ask for assistance.
“They don’t want to leave,” said Richards, the Trans Continental Pipeline’s executive director.“But they just feel like they don’t have a choice.”
Richards’s group is staffed by five volunteers who operate on a shoestring budget. Most people need between $2,000 and $4,000 to move to Denver. And rents in the Mile High City aren’t cheap: The average apartment rent isnearly $1,700 per month, according to Apartments.com. Some of those contacting Richards say they can afford to pay only $400 a month.
We’re building a raft on a tsunami,” Richards said. “We’re just trying to be able to meet the need that is suddenly here.”
Jake Nichols, a gay 18-year-old from Jefferson City, Missouri, plans to move to California, where his grandmother lives, when he graduates from high school in May. Nichols said he withdrew his acceptance from a university in Missouri after he noticed how emboldened his classmates have become since Trump’s win.
“They say stuff like ‘You queer people will have to go back in the closet now,’ and ‘Without you parading around, we will make America great again like it used to be,’” he said. “Missouri’s not the place for me right now.”
Nichols said he is worried about an erosion of LGBTQ+ rights, including same-sex marriage, under Trump.
Although Trump did not focus on same-sex marriage during his campaign, many in the LGBTQ+ community are concerned that the high court could eventually rescind that right. They point to the court’s conservative supermajority and Justice Clarence Thomas’s concurring opinion in the case overturning Roe v. Wade,in which he stated that the justices should reconsider their 2015 ruling on same-sex marriages.
Bookstores, bars and ordained ministers across the country have offered to host or perform free weddings for gay couples since Trump was elected to another term. Some, like Harold’s Haunt, an LGBTQ+-friendly bar in Pittsburgh, are planning to put up wedding decorations for couples who “need to get married real quick.”
Other LGBTQ+ couples are worried about their parental rights.
Zavos, the family law attorney, said she has seen an uptick in calls, emails and Facebook messages from same-sex couples who fear that the incoming administration or the Supreme Court could curtail their adoption rights.
Some want to fast-track their adoption plans. Others want to start the lengthy second-parent adoption process, which would secure the parental rights of nonbiological parents. Zavos saidLGBTQ+ families want to secure all the protections they can in a landscape where rights are being threatened.
“I had taken a semi-retirement,” Zavos said. “But given the circumstances, I will unretire to help the community through this crisis.”
An exit by kayak
Trump’s win has been especially distressing for many young people. The Trevor Project registered a nearly 700 percent increase in calls, texts and chat messages to its crisis services the day after the election, compared with the weeks prior.
State laws targeting transgender people made trans and nonbinary youths between 25 percent and 27 percent more likely to attempt suicide at least once in the second and third years after being enacted, a recent study published in the Nature Human Behavior journal concluded.
Carolyn Fischer knows firsthand how devastating the election has been for some LGBTQ+ teens. She said her 16-year-old son, who is trans, made a pact with three other young trans people to die by suicide if Trump won. The children met on Discord, an online chat platform popular with video gamers, and Fisher said they had discussed how upset they were by the anti-transgender rhetoric coming from Republicans on social media and television.
A few days before the election, Fisher said, her son called the Rainbow Youth Project, a nonprofit that offers crisis counseling to at-risk LGBTQ+ youths, and asked for help. All four of the trans adolescents are now receiving counseling, but at least one is still experiencing suicidal ideation.
Fisher and her husband are Republicans who had planned to vote for Trump. But on Election Day, they cast their ballots for Kamala Harris and decorated their front yard with a Pride flag to show support for LGBTQ+ people in the community.
Fisher and her husband have considered leaving their hometown to give their son a fresh start, but they don’t know where they should go.
“Nowhere in the country seems safe for LGBTQ+ kids right now,” she said.
Montgomery, the school custodian from Washington state, is so fearful about life during a second Trump administration that she is preparing an exit plan that includes a kayak.
Her first choice is to remain in Kitsap County, but if her access to gender transition care is limited, she said, she’ll take a ferry to British Columbia. In her “nightmare scenario,” transgender people would be forced to detransition or stop all gender transition medications and live in accordance with the sex they were assigned at birth. She said she would be afraid to go to any official U.S. port of entry if that happened and would instead kayak to Canada.
Montgomery estimates the 20-mile journey by sea would take at least four hours.
“If my worst fears came true,” she said, “I would be compelled to leave.”
rtainly! Let’s explore the positions on LGBTQ rights associated with Project 2024, Agenda 47, and recent speeches by Donald Trump and JD Vance:
Project 2024:
Overview: Project 2024 is a comprehensive policy handbook associated with the Trump administration. While it covers various topics, its stance on LGBTQ rights has been controversial.
Key Points:
Project 2024 calls for a ban on pornography, which is defined so broadly that it includes books featuring same-sex couples and even the existence of transgender people.
The administration aimed to erode protections for transgender students and workers.
It sought to weaken access to gender-affirming health care.
Overview: Dubbed “Agenda 47,” Trump’s policy platform targets public school teachers embroiled in culture wars and aims to undo civil rights protections for LGBTQ people.
Specifics:
Vance proposed a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, similar to a bill introduced by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Trump’s campaign pledges to dismantle Biden administration policies protecting transgender students under Title IX.
A second Trump administration would strip LGBTQ people of protections against discrimination in various contexts (employment, housing, education, health care, etc.).
In summary, both Trump and Vance have taken positions that raise concerns for LGBTQ rights. While Trump’s administration aimed to roll back protections, Vance’s controversial remarks have drawn criticism from LGBTQ advocacy groups. As voters, it’s essential to consider these stances when evaluating candidates’ impact on LGBTQ communities. 🌈🗳️
Sent by Copilot:
Certainly! Let’s explore the positions on LGBTQ rights associated with Project 2024, Agenda 47, and recent speeches by Donald Trump and JD Vance:
Project 2024:
Overview: Project 2024 is a comprehensive policy handbook associated with the Trump administration. While it covers various topics, its stance on LGBTQ rights has been controversial.
Key Points:
Project 2024 calls for a ban on pornography, which is defined so broadly that it includes books featuring same-sex couples and even the existence of transgender people.
The administration aimed to erode protections for transgender students and workers.
It sought to weaken access to gender-affirming health care.
Overview: Dubbed “Agenda 47,” Trump’s policy platform targets public school teachers embroiled in culture wars and aims to undo civil rights protections for LGBTQ people.
Specifics:
Vance proposed a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, similar to a bill introduced by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Trump’s campaign pledges to dismantle Biden administration policies protecting transgender students under Title IX.
A second Trump administration would strip LGBTQ people of protections against discrimination in various contexts (employment, housing, education, health care, etc.).
In summary, both Trump and Vance have taken positions that raise concerns for LGBTQ rights. While Trump’s administration aimed to roll back protections, Vance’s controversial remarks have drawn criticism from LGBTQ advocacy groups. As voters, it’s essential to consider these stances when evaluating candidates’ impact on LGBTQ communities. 🌈🗳️
Sent by Copilot:
Certainly! Transgender rights have been shaped significantly by court cases over the years. Let’s explore some notable ones:
G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes v. EEOC & Aimee Stephens:
Background: Aimee Stephens, a transgender woman, worked as a funeral director at R.G. and G.R. Harris Funeral Homes. When she informed her employer about her gender identity, she was fired. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) sued on her behalf.
Context: Becky, a middle school student in West Virginia, wanted to try out for the cross-country team. However, a new state law would ban her from doing so because she is transgender.
Background: The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and ACLU of Alabama filed a federal lawsuit against officials of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA). The lawsuit challenges ALEA’s practice of depriving transgender people of driver’s licenses that reflect their gender identity.
These cases highlight the ongoing struggle for transgender rights in various contexts, including employment, education, and identification. Court decisions play a crucial role in shaping the legal landscape and advancing equality for transgender individuals. 🌈🏛️ Learn more
The GOP war on the LGBTQ community continues unabated
The republican rhetoric suggests that if the win the election (president) they will take action against the LGBTQ community including bans on LGBTQ people from serving in the government or military, authorizing discrimination against the LGBTQ community if it violates someone’s religious views, enacting a nation-wide standard regarding public access to bathrooms in public facilities, enacting a nation-wide ban on gender-affirming care for minors, and banning trans woman from participating in women’s sports.
. BING AI chatbot and BARD provide some answers (below) and I have included some media accounts as well.
Binge’s answer
There has been a surge of anti-LGBTQ legislation in many states across the US, especially targeting transgender youth. According to the Human Rights Campaign1, some of the bills that have passed or are advancing in Texas, Florida and Utah are:
Yes, there are other states that have passed laws that restrict transgender people’s access to bathrooms or facilities according to their gender identity. According to the Movement Advancement Project1, a total of 10 states have such laws as of January 2024. They are:
There are many examples of right-wing preachers who have made anti-LGBTQ comments, including calling for the execution of the LGBTQ community. Here are some of them:
Pat Robertson: He is the founder of the Christian Broadcasting Network and the host of The 700 Club, and he has made numerous anti-LGBTQ statements, such as saying that homosexuality is a “perversion” and a “sin” that leads to bestiality, pedophilia, and polygamy. He also blamed the 2010 Haiti earthquake that killed over 200,000 people on a “pact with the devil” made by Haitians to gain independence from France.
These are just some of the examples of the hateful and harmful rhetoric that some right-wing preachers have used against the LGBTQ community. Such rhetoric can incite violence, discrimination, and oppression against LGBTQ people, and it contradicts the principles of human dignity and equality.
President Trump has been widely criticized for his views and policies on LGBTQ rights, which have been seen as hostile, regressive, and harmful by many LGBTQ advocates and organizations. Some of the actions he has taken or supported include:
If Trump were to run for a second term in 2024, he would likely continue to pursue these anti-LGBTQ policies and appoint judges and officials who share his views. He would also face strong opposition from LGBTQ activists and allies, who have mobilized to resist his attacks and advance LGBTQ rights at the state and local levels.
Nikki Haley is a former governor of South Carolina and a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, who is considered a potential Republican presidential candidate in 2024. She has a mixed record on LGBTQ rights, which has evolved over time. Some of the positions she has taken or expressed include:
If Haley were to run for president in 2024, she would likely face criticism from both sides of the political spectrum on LGBTQ issues. She would have to balance her appeal to the conservative base of the Republican Party, which is largely anti-LGBTQ, with her attempt to reach out to moderate and independent voters, who are more supportive of LGBTQ rights.
President Biden has been a vocal and consistent supporter of LGBTQ rights, both as a senator, a vice president, and a president. He has been praised by LGBTQ advocates and organizations for his views and policies on LGBTQ issues, which have been seen as progressive, inclusive, and beneficial by many LGBTQ people. Some of the actions he has taken or promised include:
Reversing the ban on transgender people serving openly in the military .
Restoring and expanding protections for transgender students in schools .
Issuing an executive order to prevent and combat discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in various sectors .
Increasing funding for HIV/AIDS research and prevention programs .
Supporting the Equality Act, a bill that would prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in various sectors .
Issuing an executive order to advance the human rights of LGBTQI+ people around the world .
If Biden were to run for a second term in 2024, he would likely continue to pursue these pro-LGBTQ policies and appoint judges and officials who share his views. He would also face challenges from anti-LGBTQ forces, who have been trying to undermine his actions and enact discriminatory laws at the state and local levels.
Bard’s answer
there has been a lot of proposed and passed anti-LGBTQ legislation recently. Please list them particualary in Texas, Florida and Utah
You’re right, there has been a surge of anti-LGBTQ legislation in the United States recently, with Florida, Texas, and Utah being some of the most active states. Here are some examples:
Florida:
“Don’t Say Gay” law (Parental Rights in Education Act): Prohibits classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity from kindergarten to grade 3, and in a way that is not “age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate” in any grade. This law has been widely criticized for marginalizing LGBTQ students and creating a hostile school environment.
Transgender athlete ban: Bans transgender girls and women from competing on female sports teams in public high schools and colleges. This law has been condemned by LGBTQ rights groups and athletes as discriminatory and harmful.
Texas:
“Save Chick-fil-A” law (Freedom of Speech in Religious Institutions Act): Allows faith-based organizations to deny services to LGBTQ people based on their religious beliefs. This law has been challenged in court by LGBTQ rights groups.
Anti-trans healthcare bills: Several bills have been proposed or passed in Texas that would restrict access to gender-affirming healthcare for transgender youth. These bills have been met with fierce opposition from medical professionals and LGBTQ rights groups.
Utah:
“Bathroom bill” (School Facility Privacy Act): Requires individuals to use restrooms corresponding to their sex assigned at birth in public schools and government buildings. This law has been criticized for discriminating against transgender people.
“Don’t Say Gay” bill: A bill similar to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law has been proposed in Utah, but it has not yet been passed.
These are just a few examples of the many anti-LGBTQ bills that have been introduced or passed in recent years. These laws have a negative impact on the lives of LGBTQ people and their families, and they create a climate of fear and discrimination.
It is important to note that there is also opposition to these laws, and many people are working to protect the rights of LGBTQ people. LGBTQ rights groups, such as the Human Rights Campaign and GLAAD, are fighting these laws in court and advocating for pro-LGBTQ legislation. Additionally, many businesses and organizations have spoken out against anti-LGBTQ discrimination.
The fight for LGBTQ rights is ongoing, and it is important to stay informed and engaged in order to make progress towards equality.
Here are some additional resources that you may find helpful:
On Friday, Utah’s state House of Representatives distinguished itself by becoming the country’s first legislative body to pass an anti-trans bill in 2024.
It also happens to be dangerously extreme, by seeking to make it a criminal offense for people to use a bathroom in a public building that doesn’t correspond with the gender on their birth certificate. According to Erin Reed, who tracks anti-trans legislation nationwide, the law raises the prospect of people forced to “potentially undergo a genital examination if under criminal investigation for being in the bathroom.” People determined under the law to have used the wrong bathroom inside public spaces, from colleges to Salt Lake City’s airport, could be sent to jail for up to 6 months.
His little girl has “nothing to do with any of this weird stuff” being spouted by those who should be protecting her.
The bill, which would need to pass the state’s Senate and be approved by the governor to become law, is so extreme that Reed and others have said it could even ensnare cisgender people and subject them to prosecution if someone thinks they’re peeing in the wrong place.
As Chris Geidner writes at Law Dork, “It is extreme legislation that explicitly retrofits the crimes of voyeurism and criminal trespass in the state to allow for the prosecution of many transgender people for using the right bathroom.”
When pressed on the House floor, the bill’s sponsor could not point to a single example of inappropriate behavior by a trans person in an Utah bathroom. But members of the Utah House—which meets for only 45 days a year and just started its 2024 session on Tuesday—nonetheless voted 57 to 17 to police bathrooms.
That the obviously transphobic and culture war catering move was a top priority says a lot about the leadership of my home state, which is on its way to becoming an uninhabitable toxic wasteland unless its politicians can stop the Great Salt Lake from drying up. Historically, Utah’s Republican majority has claimed to want to get government off your back—except for when it wants to look down your pants. Indeed, Utah legislators have long seemed to have a rather prurient interest in residents’ private lives and private parts.
Take the not-so-long-ago time Utah installed a “porn czar” in its attorney general’s office. In 2001, the state hired an unmarried Mormon virgin to police the state for smut and combat “cyber-sex.” The Washington Post reported that in her first months on the job, the bureaucrat was called upon to intercept a Victoria’s Secret catalog from a family mailbox, bar nude mannequin displays in store windows, and purge local libraries of R-rated movies. In 2018, the state legislature overturned the law creating the post. “The whole thing was a public-relations nightmare and kind of made Utah the laughingstock of the nation,” Sen. Todd Weiler, a Republican cosponsor of the rollback bill, told the Salt Lake Tribune.
The bathroom bill is, of course, far more intrusive, and would have far more harmful and repressive impacts than the porn czar ever did. But the drive for invasive legislation that could literally see local cops checking people’s genitalia overlaps with the lawmakers’ longstanding and unhealthy interest in what goes on behind closed doors.
Black said the bill aims to answer “The defining question of this decade, ‘What is a woman?’”
“Indeed, this bill only serves to codify that which is already indisputable but has sadly been weaponized by a radical political movement intent on rewriting the laws of nature to fit their twisted agenda,” Black said in a news release.
While LGBTQ+ rights continue to gain traction across America, there are still those, including lawmakers, who aren’t in support. In Tennessee, a state representative is championing a bill through the Tennessee legislature to ban the display of Pride flags on state property. According to the rep, parents are interested in raising their kids with values “that were in existence at the time that our country was founded.”
The Republican State Rep. Gino Bulso first introduced House Bill 1605 in December 2023. It was interesting that amongst the values, Bulso did not include slavery, eradication of the indigenous population, and other values that existed when America was founded. Nonetheless, he believes families need values that existed during the nation’s founding years.
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However, Bulso is not alone in his beliefs. Speaker of the U.S. House, Mike Johnson (R-LA), a Christian nationalist who believes that civic life and government should be based on the Bible. Bulso maintains that 18th-century values should guide Americans.
“Certainly, you know, 50 years ago, we had a consensus on what marriage is; we don’t have that anymore,” Bulso told WKRN in Nashville. “One hundred years ago, we had a consensus on sexual morality; I don’t think we have that anymore. So the values that I think most parents want their children exposed to are the ones that were in existence at the time that our country was founded.”
Utah’s Republican-controlled House voted Friday to pass a sweeping proposal to keep transgender people out of restrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity in taxpayer-funded buildings, sending the measure to the state’s majority GOP Senate for consideration just three days after the start of the session.
House Bill 257 aims to prohibit individuals from using gender-designated facilities that differ from their sex assigned at birth in government buildings, correctional facilities and domestic violence shelters unless they have undergone a transition-related surgery and legally amended the sex on their birth certificate.
The proposal would require new government buildings to include single-occupant restrooms and changing rooms while existing ones must be studied to assess “the feasibility of retrofitting or remodeling” facilities to improve privacy.
Utah House lawmakers voted 52-17 on Friday to pass the bill. Three Republicans joined all Democrats in voting against it.
The bill, if passed, would make Utah the third state to adopt explicit restrictions on transgender bathroom use in buildings other than schools. A Florida law passed last year prevents transgender people from using facilities consistent with their gender identity in all government-owned buildings, and a North Dakota law restricts bathroom use in correctional facilities.
As of January 18, GOP lawmakers have introduced 285 anti-LGBTQ bills, with a focus on restricting transgender rights and LGBTQ visibility.
The bills seek to ban drag performances, limit gender-affirming health care, and remove LGBTQ content from school libraries.
Most bills target the transgender community, aiming to redefine transgender existence in law or restrict self-identification and access to services.
“Transgender people across the country are enduring a historic and dangerous effort to control our bodies and our lives, fueled by extremist politics with the goal of erasing us from public life,” attorney Harper Seldin said.
“Taken together, these proposals are a blatant effort to deny transgender people the freedom to be ourselves at school, at work, and the support of the medical care many of us need to live.”
“In South Carolina, one bill would ban Medicaid coverage for gender affirming care up to the age of 26, expanding restrictions on care far into the adult age range,” transgender advocate Erin Reed said.
At least 200 bills focus on educational matters, while over 120 seek to restrict gender-affirming health care for minors.
Legal challenges have arisen from families and doctors due to restrictions on gender-affirming care.
The Human Rights Campaign anticipates a record number of anti-LGBTQ legislation in the upcoming state legislative sessions, including bills that deny legal recognition of transgender people and restrict LGBTQ visibility.
Related video: LGBTQ Rights Groups Want the UN to Investigate Texas (Dailymotion)
ithin the first week of Florida’s legislative session, which commenced recently, Republican lawmakers introduced several bills specifically targeting LGBTQ individuals, exceeding the count of days in the new year.
Some of the bills introduced in Florida during this legislative session are notably extreme. These include proposals to alter the state’s definition of sex and criminalize “lewd or lascivious grooming.” These measures stand out as among the most stringent of the hundreds filed in state legislatures nationwide.
Another bill suggests preventing government employees from being obligated to use pronouns requested by their colleagues. Additionally, a proposal aimed at shielding children from “harmful material” online. However, the vagueness of the term “harmful material” raises concerns among advocates, as it could potentially encompass LGBTQ content.
In a further development, a proposal from Republican state Sen. Jason Brodeur seeks to categorize almost all published accusations of anti-LGBTQ bias as “defamation per se.” This bill would prevent journalists from defending such accusations by referencing the subject’s “Constitutionally protected religious expression or beliefs” or scientific beliefs. Those liable in successful lawsuits under this proposal could face damages of at least $35,000.
“Florida has, for years, been an innovator of new assaults on freedom and equality, and this year’s slate of bills is no different,” remarked Brandon Wolf, a spokesperson for LGBTQ advocacy group the Human Rights Campaign, who is also a survivor of the Orlando, Florida, Pulse nightclub mass shooting.
Related video: LGBTQ Rights Groups Want the UN to Investigate Texas (Dailymotion)
He added, “This session, we’ll see escalating attacks on education, medical freedom, and the fundamental right of transgender people to exist as their authentic selves.” A proposed bill by Republican Rep. Dean Black mandates Floridians to sign an affidavit aligning their IDs with the sex on their original birth certificate.
Transgender individuals would be compelled to surrender existing IDs displaying their gender identity and would be unable to obtain such identification in the future. This measure poses significant hurdles for transgender individuals, impacting their access to identification reflecting their authentic gender identity.
Black’s bill mandates health insurance policies covering transition-related procedures, including “Treatment to detransition.” The proposed legislation requires coverage of conversion therapy in health insurance policies. Specifically, it calls for mental health services to address a person’s perception that their sex is inconsistent with their sex assigned at birth, affirming their birth sex.
The proposed bill further mandates any school district or state agency collecting vital statistics for anti-discrimination compliance or data purposes to identify the birth sex of individuals in the dataset. This provision could potentially limit data collection on transgender people.
The LGBTQ society has become a regular fixture in the modern day. But according to The American Civil Liberties Union, they have been getting a lot of legal bills. Backed into a corner, they now speak up, hopeful for public sympathy, which they used to get — until now.
This year, state legislators passed a record-breaking number of laws, and they all targeted LGBTQ privileges in the U.S. The ACLU said it noticed at least 508 bills impacting the community in 2023.
It also says that 84 of these bills are now laws. The rise in legislation clashed with an increase in threats of violence against the LGBTQ community.
The federal security agencies are sounding the alarm. However, activists say that despite the record-breaking wave of anti-LGBTQ bills, other lawmakers have stepped up to combat such efforts.
“We’ve also witnessed incredible moments of strength in states and communities across the country who have made sure this political assault does not go unnoticed or is made any easier for politicians opposed to our very existence,” said Gillian Branstetter, Communications Strategist at the ACLU, in a statement to ABC News.
The vast majority of legislation passed across the country has impacted gender-affirming care for minors, blocking trans youth from accessing treatments in some cases, including puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and surgeries.
Advocates tracking several bills they call ‘anti-LGBTQ’
These laws do not apply to such treatments in cases where the subject is a cisgender or intersex youth. The majority of those who support the law are against gender transitioning. They believe that it is harmful to youth and young adults.
The more lenient ones want patients to wait until they are older to make such decisions. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp is one such man. In March 2023, he signed a bill in his state banning doctors from starting hormone therapy for transgender youth under the age of 18. All “to ensure we protect the health and wellbeing of Georgia’s children.”
In September, a judge let the state enforce the ban after it faced a lawsuit. But there’s more where that came from.
At least 14 laws impacting the LGBTQ community are currently in the middle of legal battles. And if what Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO of LGBTQ media advocacy group GLAAD, said is true, it is just the beginning.
Ellis says, “The silver lining in this year of challenge is how LGBTQ people and our allies showed up for our community and everyone’s fundamental freedoms.”
Aside from Georgia, other states considered hostile towards the LGBTQ include Ohio and Wisconsin. Fortunately, several states have passed protection laws for the LGBTQ community. They include Minnesota, Michigan, New York, and California.
Atransgender “bathroom ban” in North Carolina caused a national uproar in 2016. Bruce Springsteen, Cyndi Lauper, Nick Jonas and a long list of other A-list performers canceled shows in the state. Global corporations Deutsche Bank and PayPal torpedoed plans to expand in Cary and Charlotte. The NCAA moved its scheduled championship games elsewhere.
Now, eight years later, after Utah passed a similar bill on Monday, the reaction beyond the state’s borders appears to be more of a shrug.
Neither of Utah’s largest businesses released statements in response to the legislation. Tens of thousands of out-of-towners, and an ensuing economic boost, were just heading home from the Sundance Film Festival, held annually in Park City. Global sensation — and queer icon — Bad Bunny is slated to headline a concert in Salt Lake City in upcoming weeks. Next month, Salt Lake City will be hosting first- and second-round games in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.
Representatives for the NCAA, Bad Bunny and Sundance did not immediately return requests for comment.
In fact, nine other states passed so-called transgender bathroom bills in the years between those passed by North Carolina and Utah, with little fanfare as well.
Allison Scott, who volunteered as an on-the-ground activist in North Carolina to fight HB 2, described this week’s lackluster reaction to Utah’s “bathroom bill” and the several others that have been passed in recent years as “very telling.”
“We were all saying that with HB 2: ‘It’s not over,’” said Scott, who is also the director of impact and innovation for the Campaign for Southern Equality, an LGBTQ advocacy group. “Now, here we are several years later and we’ve seen these bills grow and increase and grow and increase year over year over year, and we’re right back not only where we started but worse.”
While the enactment of the Utah law has immediate implications for the state’s trans community, the tepid response to its passage also reflects a broader retreat on transgender rights that less than a decade ago galvanized corporate America, elite sports and Hollywood.
Utah House Bill 257, which is titled “Sex-based Designations for Privacy, Anti-bullying and Women’s Opportunities,” limits transgender people’s access to bathrooms in public schools and government-operated buildings. These include restrooms at Salt Lake City International Airport, which is managed by local government, and in Utah’s public hospitals and universities. It also specifies the state’s legal definition of “male” and “female” is based on a person’s genitalia at birth rather than their gender identity.
The bill makes exceptions for trans people who have received genital surgery and changed their gender marker to match their gender identity on their birth certificates.
Critics of the legislation have said the law will create a “dangerous situation for trans youth.”
Supporters of the legislation have argued that without a measure in place, men posing as trans women will go into women’s public restrooms and commit sexual misconduct.
Rep. Kera Birkeland, who sponsored the Utah law, said that the bill was necessary to close a “giant loophole for predators” and will only criminally charge offenders who commit “an offense of lewdness,” as the bill states.
“If the people just go in and use the bathroom the way they’re supposed to be used, they will be fine. That has remained consistent throughout the bill, throughout any change,” Birkeland said in a phone call. “We’re not targeting just people who are transgender or people who are like, ‘I’m going to miss my flight, I’m going to duck into the men’s bathroom because the line is shorter.’”
She also pushed back on criticism that the bill would create an environment where Utahns are policing trans people in public restrooms, pointing to a provision in the bill that would criminally charge people for falsely reporting trans people in public restrooms.
“We do not want to incentivize any vigilante people out there trying to be jerks,” she said. “The whole goal is just to ensure that everyone feels like they have a safe place to do private things.”
Erin Reed, a transgender journalist and advocate, pushed back on this, arguing that the legislation will create disruption for trans people regardless of the bill’s specifics.
“People are not going to go through the fine points of a 12-page law,” Reed said. “More likely than not, you’re just going to see trans people and cis people challenged in bathrooms.”
Aside from Utah and North Carolina, lawmakers in nine other states have enacted similar legislation in recent years, including in Florida, Tennessee and Kentucky, according to a tally by The Associated Press. The measures largely restrict trans people’s access to restrooms solely in schools or in schools and government-operated buildings.
But North Carolina’s law, HB 2, went further, barring trans people from using restrooms and changing facilities that matched their gender identities in most public spaces.
HB 2 — which was later partially repealed in 2017 — also prevented local governments from passing LGBTQ nondiscrimination measures and rendered then-existing protections, including one in Charlotte, moot. For this reason, the law affected a much broader segment of the population compared to today’s bills and therefore drew national ire, said Shannon Gilreath, a professor at Wake Forest University’s School of Law and a faculty member of the university’s gender and sexuality program.
“When one’s own interests are not directly compromised by some form of discrimination, one is less likely to respond or to care,” Gilreath said. “I might not believe that’s necessarily the right attitude to have — to do what’s expedient versus to do what’s right in a situation — but that’s human nature.”
Some studies back Gilreath’s line of reasoning.
A survey from the nonpartisan research group Public Religion Research Institute conducted last year found an estimated 79% of Americans support anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people. Policies that largely favor trans Americans solely received significantly less support, the poll found. However, Americans who say they know at least one trans person are much more likely to support pro-trans policies, a 2022 survey from the Pew Research Center found.
Reed said that what’s changed from 2016 to now is that people — and even billion-dollar corporations — have become afraid of provoking the far-right.
She pointed to a group of conservative provocateurs who collectively have amassed tens of millions of social media followers in part by stoking outrage over LGBTQ issues. In several instances, threats of violence have followed the subjects of posts made or amplified by the group of right-wing influencers.
“These people are scary,” Reed said. “If the NBA All-Star Game threatened to pull a game right now? In this atmosphere? Today? They’d get bomb threats from conservatives.”
Last year, bomb threats were made to Budweiser factories across the country after trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney’s brand partnership with Bud Light created an online firestorm in pockets of right-wing social media. Target also pulled some of its LGBTQ-themed merchandise for Pride Month from its shelves last year after it said it received “threats impacting our team members’ sense of safety and wellbeing while at work.”
Reed also suggested that it might not be politically advantageous for Republicans to go against the grain when it comes to issues that affect trans people.
Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine faced political blowback after vetoing a bill that would ban gender-affirming care for minors in the state in December. Former President Donald Trump urged Ohio state lawmakers to override the veto, writing on his social media platform, Truth Social, that he was “finished” with the Republican governor. Ohio senators overrode the governor’s veto last week.
In recent weeks, local activists had been unsure whether Utah Gov. Spencer Cox would sign HB 257. Cox in 2022 vetoed legislation that aimed to limit transgender students’ ability to compete on girls sports teams in school, citing the disproportionate rate of suicidal ideation among trans kids.
Conservative lawmakers introduced more than 500 anti-LGBTQ bills in state legislatures across the country, according to a tally by the ACLU, with the majority of them targeting trans people. Seventy-five of those bills became law, including a ban on gender-affirming care for minors in Utah, which Cox signed into law.
Cox signed Utah’s “bathroom bill” on Monday evening with little fanfare and issued a short statement after weeks of speculation on his position.
“We want public facilities that are safe and accommodating for everyone and this bill increases privacy protections for all,” the statement read.
The law is effective immediately.
In addition to Utah, legislators in five states — South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Kansas and Iowa — have introduced their own “bathroom bills” or legislation that further expands “bathroom bills” already on the books, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Donald Trump Downplays Transgender Issues: ‘Very Small Number of People’
President-elect Donald Trump said transgender issues only affect a “very small number of people.”
Trump was named TIME Magazine‘s 2024 Person of the Year on Thursday. In his interview with the magazine, he said “the bathroom issue” only pertains to a small amount of people and it’s tearing the country apart. He also advocated for people to go “along with” the Supreme Court‘s rulings.
“I don’t want to get into the bathroom issue. In a study published by Statista in July, the organization found that around 7.6 percent of adults in the United States identified as a part of the LGBTQ+ community in 2023, which is more than double the numbers in 2012.
The study found that as of 2021, around 97.4 percent of people assigned female at birth still identified as such.
2022 survey data from Gallup, the Williams Institute and Pew Research suggests that between .5 and 1.6 percent of adults in the United States identify as transgender or nonbinary.
During his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump ran an advertisement focusing on transgender rights, famously saying “Kamala is for They/Them” and that “Donald Trump is for Us
Kamala even supports letting biological men compete against our girls in their sports,” the ad read. “Kamala is for they, them. President Trump is for you.”
Trump told TIME that “it’s true, Trump is for us.”
A spokesperson for Trump said that he has plans for Day 1 in office, which range from settling the Russian and Ukrainian war to removing protections for transgender students.
“I am a big believer in the Supreme Court, and I’m going to go by their rulings, and so far, I think their rulings have been rulings that people are going along with,” Trump said, “but we’re talking about a very small number of people, and we’re talking about it, and it gets massive coverage, and it’s not a lot of people.”
“We support gay marriage, and voted for the Respect for Marriage Act twice. However, if you think protecting women is discrimination, you are the problem,” Mace posted to X, formerly known as Twitter. “We don’t care if you’re trans, if you have balls we don’t want you in the women’s bathroom.”
The House sergeant-at-arms would reportedly be responsible for enforcing the ban, as Mace said in a few of her posts. A copy of the bill shared by Axios shows that bathrooms would be divided along the lines of “biological sex.”
Trump said in his interview with TIME that he does agree with McBride, suggesting the lawmakers should be focused on more important issues.
“I do agree with that,” Trump said. “On that—absolutely. As I was saying, it’s a small number of people.”
I agree with your idea of reviewing the Federal government’s operations to improve efficiency. The first step should be to review prior commissions and studies from the Carter era and implement still-valid recommendations.
Next, your commission should examine all agencies, especially the Defense Department, DHS, Intelligence agencies, and Social Security. Empower Federal employees to make recommendations and meet with agency heads, OMB, GAO, and congressional committees to formulate plans, including drafting executive orders and implementing legislation as needed..
Revise the renventing government programs, ensuring each agency constantly reviews and updates its processes with input from workers and the public. The goal is to spend less by eliminating non-essential services. The efficiency committee should meet quarterly with GAO, Congressional staff and OMB and report progress to OMB, and the President.
Follow up on your transparency pledge by posting findings online and requesting public input. The final report should be public, with OMB stating which proposals they support.
Create a New Department of Immigration and Consular Affairs
Merge the Consular Affairs Bureau, DHS CIS, ICE, and Department of Labor certification programs into a new cabinet level agency.
Most employees will work at the Kentucky Consular Center, immigration service centers, passport offices,
ports of entry, spending 40% of their time overseas. Only senior staff will remain in DC. All staff will be Foreign Service officers, undergoing one year of training, followed by two domestic and two overseas assignments.
Routine NIVs will be processed via ETA, with most countries part of the VWP. Overseas positions will have three to five line officers and a section chief. There will be four divisions: NIV, immigration visa processing, fraud detection, and consular protection services.
Entry to the Department of State, Immigration and Consular Affairs, and DHS will require graduate degrees and overseas experience. Credit will be given for military or Peace Corps service. Officers will start at FS level 05, serve three years of probation, and be promoted to 03 upon tenure. They will serve ten-year terms with reviews every ten years. Retirement age will be 60, with optional service to 70. Maximum entry age is 30.
Create a New Cabinet Department of International Trade
Merge offices within Commerce, State, DOL, and other agencies. Expand the number of foreign commercial and agricultural officers, requiring the same entry criteria as the State Department and the new
Department of Immigration and Consular Services.
DOD Savings
Privatize Commissary, PX, golf courses, bowling alleys, and other support services. Consolidate all military air services into the Air Force. Privatize military lodging and turn over base schools to local districts, keeping DOD schools overseas.
There is no rational reason why DOD should be operating the Eight Largest grocery chain in the world. Walmart, or Target could opperate if much more efficiently. they could provide discounts to active duty personel based on rank. and shopping would be tax free as well.
Same thing applies to domestic DOD schools, they should be turned over to the local school district. Same thing for base libraries, they should also be turned over to the local library system, with a branch library on base. the military lodging facilities should be contracted out as well. On base dining should also be contracted out. Recreational facilities should also be contracted out to the local regional government recreational facilities but remain located on base. Overseas schools, libraries and recreational facilities should be run by DOD except where it is practical to have local governments manage them on a contract basis. Certainty Walmart or Target could and should opperate international commissaries and PX services. All of these services could and should be privatized saving the government money without harming national security.
Consolidate intelligence agencies into the CIA.
Merge the National Forest land and BLM lands eliminating the BLM.
Merge national monuments into the National Park Service.
Reform the Federal Budget Process
The USG faces a fiscal cliff. To address this, the government must become more efficient, generate new revenue, and reduce non essential spending, starting with the DOD. Consider Republican proposals like a biennial budget cycle, eliminating most tax expenditures, introducing a flat tax and a National Debt Reduction Tax, restructuring federal agencies, and moving many agencies outside Washington.
There are trillions in unspent funds that need to be liquidated and used for debt relief. Reform the budget process to end automatic CRs and government shutdowns, and eliminate the debt ceiling limit..
Shift to a two-year budget cycle, with the first year for passing the budget and the second for oversight. Mandate Congress to pass the budget by year-end, with automatic CRs if not passed on time Shift the fiscal year back to a calendar year cycle.
I have decided to refrain from overly political postings and poetry from now on. I still have opinions but will restrain myself from posting anything too inflammatory. Just not worth it, and don’t want to end up on some government watch list or worst because of something I posted. I don’t have the bandwidth to think about it. But I did want to offer my analysis as it is.
What Happened?
There are a number of reasons for the results
First off world- wide trends were against incumbents everywhere due to high inflation and perceptions that the economy is not working for the average person. Biden never got upon 40 percent approval and that matters a lot.
Second most people did not vote.
About 50 percent of Americans actually voted. Many people were not eligible, too young, criminal records, recently moved, or just did not bother to vote. Only 35 percent of Americans voted for Trump. A bit less for Harris. In that sense it was a close election, and within the margin of error so those who think the polls were off don’t understand that when it is that close any result is possible, you just can’t predict that..
Third, the country remains deeply divided, half the country are Trump supporters, and half are Harris supporters, there is no huge popular red mandate, He won but it was not a landslide victory, and many people are nervous about the Trump agenda,
Fourth the polls got it right – the results were within the margins of error so it was essentially a coin toss and the Blue Team lost but not by much.
Fifth, there is no massive mandate for Trump. He barely won, and the Republicans barely managed to win both the House and the Senate.
Sixth, Voter Suppression worked.
Just a few examples – purging the voting polls just before the elections, limiting drop box locations, cuting back on poll locations in Blue districts but not in red districts, just one example at Central Florida university campus there were only four polling places open for a population of 50,000 people and lines were very long. This was deliberately done to keep the wrong type of voter from voting.
Seven, Biden should have kept his pledge to be a transitional President and he should have said in November last year he should have resigned citing his mental fit his declining mental fitness.
Harris would have been President and have to compete in an open primary contest. It was obvious to many observers that Biden was showing signs of dementia. He should have stepped down. Instead they circled the wagon and downplayed what was happening or said that Trump was showing signs as well. And many people did not see Harris to be presidential material.
A new leader would have emerged and perhaps won. By the time Biden stepped down it was too late and due to campaign finance rules Harris and only Harris could inherit the apparatus and fund raising. Anyone chosen at the last minute would have to start with zero campaign staff and money.
Eight
So many people get their news from right wing echo chamber filled with misinformation and lies.
The mainstream media is just not influential anymore. Who cares what the WP writes or NYT or MSNBC or CNN. And local news sites have been taken over the right wing. The left has not kept up and need to use the new media and create their own podcast etc.
Nine, the gender gap is real.
Women have moved towards the democratic party; men have moved towards the Republican party. The republicans were able to win over the male vote and working class voters. Celebrity endorsers did not sway the public
Ten The political consultant class failed once again.
Harris would have been better served to run her own campaign without all the professional consultants getting in the way. Trump by and large followed his instincts and was not packaged by consultants. People want authenticity, not packaged politicians.
11, it was not enough to call out the republicans for being authoritarian.
Many people don’t have a clue what that means. Many people don’t know much at all about history and have a very vague idea of Hitler for example. This line of attack failed Hilary and failed Harris as well.
12, what did the democrats offer?
The Republicans were promising all sorts of things but people don’t understand or follow policy debates. Climate change? Yes an important issue but not high on most voters mind. Saving democracy? Not so much. The Biden record on the economy is objectively better but people feel the economy is bad due to high inflation, feel crime is out of control, and feel the border is unsecured. None of that is objectively true but the democrats were not able to break through the fog of misinformation.
13 racism and sexism played a role.
Many people were just not ready for a woman of color to become president. A different woman perhaps? But not this woman.
14 Perceptions Matter Even if the Facts Don’t Support the Narrative
Perceptions that crime is out of control, the economy is in horrid shape and the border is wide open is far more important than the reality.
15 Support for Israel is a Problem.
It is obvious that the current government is determined to defeat their enemies even it if means destroying Gaza and the West Bank and have gone way beyond punishing Hamas for October 7th attacks and they are now in geocide adjacent territory.. They might win a shortterm victory but long term it is not a winning strategy. Biden and Harris just did not see how this policy was opposed by many voters who would otherwise be in their camp.
16 Lingering impact of the Fall of Kabul
17 Biden’s Garbage Comments were equivalent to Hilary’s Deplorables Comments which cost her the Election
18 Hunter Biden Case was a distraction but it Hurt both Biden and Harris
19 Being from Oakland was a big Negative for Harris as Hating on California is a Big thing especially among Republicans
20 celebrity Endorsements Did not Move the Needle
`21 Harris was not able to distance herself from Biden
22 Harris has a reputation for being a light-weight in over her head
23 Harris was seen by many people as having slept her way to the top
24 Both Biden and Harris were too slow to realize the perception of the Border being wide open hurt them
25 She should have picked Shapiro as her Running Mate
That’s my summary of why Harris lost
Why DId Trump WIn?
One, His base was much more energized than Harris’s base
Two, Racism and Sexism Played a Role as did the Male Gender Gap
Three, Trump Got the New Media environment right and Harris did Not
Four, Many voters went with the Devil We Know vrs the Devil We Don’t Know
Fifth, Many people discount the overheated Rhetoric of Trump
Six. Trump Remains a Masterful Showman and It worked
Seven, Trump is a con man and knows to work his con on his marks – the entire American population
Eight, Voter Suppression Worked in Trump’s Favor
Nine, Russian disinformation campaign worked in Trump’s favor
Ten, Voters Gave Trump a Pass on COVID figuring that was a one off thing and that prior to COVID things were going well
11, More People liked Trump that hate him
12, Trump got the low information voters to vote, Harris did not
13, In the end, Harris did a great job but was dealt a losing ticket from the beginning.
Many voters voted for the Devil they knew rather than the devil they don’t know or bought into the right wing boogey man that Harris was a communist. Which is complete BS , there are no communists running for office in the US and Harris and Democrats are not communists, but hey it worked for some uneducated people. And people did not understand what an authoritarian is or how dangerous Trump and his right-wing allies could be. They just thought Biden and Harris failed and should be voted out of office. And many people gave Trump a pass on COVID thinking the economy was doing fine until that came along.
Trump won a narrow victory in the popular vote but won the seven swing states and most of the red states. His total popular vote will be about 51 percent once all the votes are counted. Hardly a landslide victory.
only 35 percent of Americans voted for Trump, Many people did not vote because they were not eligible or interested enough. In the end Trump will get 51 percent and Harris 47 or 48 percent both well within the margin of error.
Same thing for the Republican Senate and House counts, a narrow but sufficient win hardly a red wave or a huge mandate.
We remain divided into 50 50 nation. The Republicans will Learn that in two years if they overreach as it is likely and if their radical plans lead to a recession or reflection also likely
What Did Not Happen
still processing what happened and what did not happen as well as what might happen.
First Biden and Harris did the right thing by meeting with Trump and promising a smooth transition and normal courtesies. this is important in and in itself.
Second the election went smoothly there were a few isolated incidents of violence, a few Russian bomb threats and some minor voter suppression attempts, but it was a fair and free election. Unfortunately, our side lost.
Third, despite everyone saying the polls were wrong, they were correct it was within the margins of error so it could have gone either way. the final popular vote count will be very close as California votes are finally counted.
It was not a red wave, more a red trickle but just enough to put them over the finish line.
High profile celebrity endorsements did not matter, and made Harris seem to be an elitist out of touch Californian politician.
Harris avoided Hillary’s mistake and campaigned heavily.
but she also fell into the trap of making it all about how bad Trump might be without a real positive focused easily understood message. Joy, and hope could not overcome the title wave of anger and hate and disinformation.
the new media podcasters etc are dominated by the right. Harris should have gone of the Rogan show in my opinion.
No mass protest rallies yet.
The Senate is Not Going to Be railroaded by Trump regarding cabinet appointees or policy and that is a good thing, same thing for the House
No gun shooting at polling places
that’s my two cents worth.
Government Efficiency Commission – How to do it Right
in principle the idea of an government efficiency committee is a good idea. But the way they are doing it is the wrong way to go about it. First the committee should not have any pre-conceived ideas as to how much they should reduce the budget. Second, the committee should reach out to the rank and file and solicit their input on how they would restructure the government and what they would reduce. Third, DOD, DHS, Social Security should all be on the table for a through review. Just one example, it is long over due for the Pentagon to privatize the PX and Commissaries. Domestically there is no need for either -Walmart could run it and provide a discount for active duty personal for example. Same thing for golf courses, bowling alleys and recreational facilities – they can all be contracted out. Just one of many examples.
Two ideas worth considering.
Creating a new Cabinet Department of Immigration and Consular Services merging functions from the Department of State, DHS and DOL.
Creative a new Cabinet of International Trade Promotion merging functions in DOS, DHS, DOL and DHS
What’s Going to Happen
Now what? My prediction? The Republicans and conservative game plan to turn the US into something akin to Hungary has a possibility of working. A one party state where the leader is in charge, the media, legislature, local governments, universities have all been tamed, even though they go through the charade of having elections.
But if they overreach and crash the economy through launching a trade war, or their deportation immigrants also backfires, or the billions of dollars being spent on enforcing it or shutting down large parts of the Federal government because their reckless tax cuts blow a huge hole in the Federal government crippling its ability to do anything, leading to a reflation the democrats could come back if they figure out how to talk with voters and not talk down to voters. And if climate change becomes such a huge problem that their policy of ignoring it and making things worst by drilling for more oil, the democrats could still come back.
But I am cautiously optimistic. Some of the cabinet picks are not too bad relatively speaking but most are right wing ideologues with little experience. And the president and Vice president like a lot of people in power when faced with problems double down and make things worst rather than admitting their policies are not working and doing a course correction. And of course few of them are willing to stand up and do what is right for the country rather than what is right for the party and their leader.
Bottom line we are in for some difficult times. But I remain optimistic we will survive this, and eventually there will be a course correction. There usually is.
Scaled back deportation focusing on criminals and people who have been in the US less than four years, limited amnesty, called earned legalization not amnesty for those who meet the following requirements
speak English
been here for more than four years
have a job
particularly in agriculture, landscaping, construction, nursing homes, restaurants, and hospitality business
pass a criminal background check
willing to pay past taxes and social security payments
priority will be given to spouses of US citizens and parents of US citizens
all illegals will have six months to register and apply for limited green cards. They will be issued temporary green cards for five years, afterwards will be eligible for another five years and after being in the US for ten years will be able to apply for citizenship. Will be allowed to sponsor parents, spouses and children but not siblings.
Temporary pause on immigration visa processing for one year except for IR Status
A new immigration act proposed
DV processing ending
Reduction in Foreign student’s applications by 25 percent
F4 status (Siblings of US Citizens) canceled— I am in Favor of This
all current applicants have one year to confirm they are still interested, speak English, have appropriate job skills, and are at least high school graduates. They will be allowed to immigrate after the one-year pause. If they don’t meet the criteria, their applications will be denied. No new applicants will be allowed to apply, as the category will disappear.
The military pulled back and stationed on the border
Offering repayment of student loans for people who serve in the Federal, State or local government or serve in the military
Offering a new GI bill for service in the military
Making Military training and certifications college credit and transferable nation wide I am a big proponent of this and also expansion of DANTESS testing at all universities.
Five percent of Tariff imposed -this would avoid a ruinous tit for tat trade war
DOGE recommendations unveiled – on line with public comments encouraged and taken into account
10 percent reduction in force for Federal government agencies spread out over four years along with a ten percent budget cutback also spread out over four years
All federal employees will have to reapply for continued employment and have to reapply for security background checks. lowest ranked ten percent will be involuntarily retired. Early retirement buyouts will be encouraged to meet the RIF goals. A three year freeze on salary adjustments and a freeze on new hiring as well.
Department of Education’s new mission is purging Universities of radical leftism eliminating women’s studies, gender studies, queer studies, cultural Marxism, Marxism, and ethnic studies, and eliminating DEI programming, promoting the teaching of patriotic history and civics courses and classical great books courses, Encouraging consolidation and closing of marginal universities. I see this coming.
Banning Trans status declaring that there are only two genders male and female assigned at birth, nationwide bathroom bans, and banning changing IDs. Banning Trans people from service in the Government and banning insurance coverage to gender reassignment. Unfortunately, I see this as very likely to be enacted given the anti-trans hysteria among Republicans,
25 reduction in US AID
Reduction in US support for UN agencies
Elimination of the FS test and separate recruitment
Offering repayment of student loans for people who serve in the Federal, State or local government or serve in the military
Offering new GI bill for service in the military
Comments on Cabinet Picks so far
some are good Rubio for State for Example and the DOL pick. Others are horrible DOD, DNI, CIA, FBI. SO Far the Senate is refusing to roll over and play dead. That is a good trend.
Down in the dirt has published my poem, Stairway to Heaven, Highway to Hell.
Hi there, this is Janet from Down in the Dirt, and
thanks for the sub. We are accepting “Stairway To Heaven Bumper Sticker”
for the February 2025 issue of Down in the Dirt magazine in print and
online (v228, released 2/1/25).
Your acceptance will also be online by the end of the day today… By the
end of the day today, Friday (at the end of the business day, CST), your
accepted writing will have its own web page in the writings section of http://scars.tv at http://scars.tv/cgi-bin/framesmain.pl?writers – just go
to the writings link, and under your name in the left frame will be your
accepted writing, which when clicked will appear in the larger right
frame. (In fact, if you have writings published in more than one issue,
you can in the future just look up your writings in the writings section,
and More Down in the Dirt Publication Newsabove every accepted piece of writing appearing in the right frame will be a link to where it was accepted for publication.) And so you know,
if you look up your writing in the writings section of http://scars.tv, a
link will appear above your writings letting the browser know which issue
the writing is accepted for (and once the issue is published, there will
be links there to the Internet/web page and the printer ordering link for
the issue).
Led Zeppelin – Stairway To Heaven (Live at Earls Court 1975): Watch here
Heart – Stairway to Heaven (Live at Kennedy Center Honors): Watch here
There’s a lady who’s sure, all that glitters is gold
And she’s buying a stairway to heaven
When she gets there she knows
If the stores are all closed
With a word, she can get what she came for
Ooh-ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh-ooh
And she’s buying a stairway to heaven
There’s a sign on the wall, but she wants to be sure
‘Cause you know, sometimes words have two meanings
In a tree by the brook, there’s a songbird who sings
Sometimes all of our thoughts are misgiven
Ooh, it makes me wonder
Ooh, it makes me wonder
There’s a feeling I get when I look to the west
And my spirit is crying for leaving
In my thoughts, I have seen rings of smoke through the trees
And the voices of those who stand looking
Ooh, it makes me wonder
Ooh, it really makes me wonder
And it’s whispered that soon, if we all call the tune
Then the piper will lead us to reason
And a new day will dawn for those who stand long
And the forests will echo with laughter
Whoa-whoa-whoa, oh-oh
If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow, don’t be alarmed now
It’s just a spring clean for the May Queen
Yes, there are two paths you can go by, but in the long run
And there’s still time to change the road you’re on
And it makes me wonder
Oh, whoa-oh
Your head is humming and it won’t go
In case you don’t know
The piper’s calling you to join him
Dear lady, can you hear the wind blow?
And did you know
Your stairway lies on the whispering wind?
And as we wind on down the road
Our shadows taller than our soul
There walks a lady we all know
Who shines white light and wants to show
How everything still turns to gold
And if you listen very hard
The tune will come to you at last
When all are one and one is all, yeah
To be a rock and not to roll
During the Trump-Haris debate, President Trump made racists comments about Haitian immigrants eating pets in Springfield, Ohio. the Moderator fact checked him pointing out that the City Manager, Mayor and Police chief all denied that this was an actual thing. Nonetheless Trump, JD Vance and their cohorts in the MAGA movement have spent the last two weeks repeating these vile rumors.
Co-pilot provided background information
To provide accurate background information on recent comments by President Trump and JD Vance about Haitian immigrants eating dogs and cats in Springfield, Ohio, I’ll need to search for the most up-to-date and reliable sources. Let me gather that information for you.
The comments you’re referring to were made recently and have caused significant controversy. Here’s a summary of the situation:
On March 16, 2024, during a campaign rally in Dayton, Ohio, former President Donald Trump made claims about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio. He stated Haitian immigrants were coming to Ohio in large numbers and suggested they were engaging in unusual practices, including eating dogs and cats.
JD Vance, a Republican Senator from Ohio, later echoed and defended Trump’s comments in a social media post.
These statements have been widely criticized by political opponents, fact-checkers, and immigrant advocacy groups as being inflammatory and not based on evidence.
Local officials in Springfield, Ohio, have disputed these claims, stating that there is no evidence of such practices occurring in their community.
The comments have sparked a broader debate about immigration rhetoric and its impact on communities.
For direct sources and more detailed information, you can refer to the following links:
He stated Haitian immigrants were coming to Ohio in large numbers and suggested they were engaging in unusual practices, including eating dogs and cats.
These sources provide comprehensive coverage of the statements made, the context surrounding them, and the reactions they’ve generated. It’s important to approach this topic with critical thinking and to consider multiple perspectives when evaluating the impact and accuracy of these claims.
Here are my poems and stories about these ridiculous racist claims.
Sandra Jones Interrupts Haitian Voodoo Cat Ritual
Sandra Lee Jones lived in Springfield, Ohio. She was a local political activist and recently had gotten involved in the MAGA movement local chapter which was quite concerned with the problems facing the community with the influx of Haitian immigrants. She was convinced that her Haitian neighbors were killing and eating dogs and cats as part of a satanic voodoo ritual. She followed the controversy on Facebook and was determined to get footage confirming that. She had contacted the local police, the local papers, and the Mayor, but they ignored her frequent calls seeing her as a crank caller and warning her of the legal penalties for filing false and frivolous police reports.
One night, she went into the woods with her friends to spy on a Haitian voodoo ceremony being held on a full moon night deep in the woods. They saw a lost black cat running away from the campfire being chased by a voodoo priestess.
Sandra rescued the cat and confronted her.
Sandra rescued the cat and confronted her.
“Hey, what are you doing to the cats and dogs? Are you eating them?”
The priestess, Mambo Lola Sita, said,
“Back off, Karen. Mind your own business. And give me back Sassy my cat. We need him for our ritual. We can perform a blessing ritual for you and your friends. Maybe you win the lotto or get a new boyfriend or girlfriend, whatever you want I can make happen with my voodoo mojo.
Sandra pulled out her cell phone and called the police. They were used to her frequent calls and considered her a nuisance crank caller. Jason Adams, her video assistant live streamed the encounter on FB, X, and Fox News. Which broke into their regular programming to bring live coverage of ‘”The Voodoo Cat Ritual” taking place in Springfield, Ohio. They had live interviews with Christian Ministers active in the “anti- Voodoo” movement. Former President Trump and JD Vance live called into the program denouncing the Haitians for conducting shocking voodoo animal sacrifices.
The right media made Sandra a hero for standing up to the evil Haitians. Donald Trump and JD Vance said they believed her story. Only 30 percent of Americans believed her story, most people were sympathetic to the Haitian immigrants
Trump lauded the brave woman who saved a cat from death in a voodoo ceremony.,
Haitian immigrants across the country accused of killing pets, Proud Boys descend on Springfield, Ohio.
“These animals from Haiti are sick weirdos, totally disgusting vermin. The local police should be arresting them but they are too afraid of the woke radical leftist mob and the rabid pro-open borders media. They kill cats, dogs, and ducks and eat them as part of their satanic Voodoo ceremonies. Why won’t comrade Kamala apologize to the country for letting these Haitian thugs into the country in the first place? Is she a secret Voodoo believer? Her father was from Jamaica they do voodoo there too. I am told Thanks to Sandra the cat was saved. On day one of my Presidency, we will deport all the Haitians in the US, starting with Springfield, ground zero of the Haitian Voodoo invasion, and we will also make Voodoo illegal.”
The police and media showed up and walked about the campfire confirming that there were no dead animals at the site. They arrested Sandra and her associates for filing a false police report and instigating a hate crime. The Haitians declined to press charges and were released.
They began receiving hate mail every day. A week later Sandra was horrified when she looked out at the front yard covered with dead cats and dogs on top of the freshly fallen first snow of the year, as the cold front finally moved through.
“Karen” is a pejorative term that refers to white middle-aged women who call the police to report crimes allegedly being committed by black people.
“MAGA Make America Great Again” is President Trump’s populist movement that has taken over the Republican party.
“Mind Your Own Business” is Governor Tim Walz, the democratic party’s candidate warning to the Republican MAGA movement positions on abortion and LRBTQ rights
Haitian immigrants across the country accused of killing pets, Proud Boys descend on Springfield, Ohio.
Trump and Vance hold a rally in Springfield to denounce immigrant pet abuse by Haitian immigrants.
The Proud Boys and other right-wing groups announce that they are going to Springfield, Ohio to hold citizen arrests of the entire Haitian community and expel them from town to save the town from the threat of dog and cat killings posed by the Haitian immigrants.
After the rally, the proud boys go around shooting and killing Haitians while Trump says nothing to condemn the horrific violence and promises to pay the legal bills of the patriots who cleaned up the city.
The residents of the town rally to protect their new neighbors and fight back. The Proud Boys and others leave town after killing Haitians and burning down their businesses. The townspeople held a press conference and announced that they would help their Haitian friends rebuilt their lives.
Trump Says Time to Deport all Haitians
“When I am President, we will eliminate immigration from shit-hole countries like Haiti and deport Haitians en-mass. It is a terrible country where they come from. The Haitians are simply horrid animals. The proud boys go ahead and rough them up scare them to leave town so they can go and infest I don’t know maybe Oakland? Comrade Harris’s hometown?
The national Associations of Caribbean Americans endorse Kamala Harris and promises a new beginning for Caribbean Americans including Haitians.
Donald Trump Doubles Down
Donald Trump
Is a stubborn old man
Adamant in his delusions
Doubling down on his racist lies,
Comments about Haitians
Eeating cats, ducks, dogs and gesse.
Appealing to his racist white base
Who eat up his hateful words.
Haiti Eating dogs Oh My
Trump and Vance
Have gone off
The racist deep-end
Talking about Haitians
Eating dogs and cats
Implying they were engaged
In weird voodoo rituals.
Trump Goes On Tirade about Haitian immigrants
Trump announced that if he were elected president he would immediately deport Haitians and rescind the TSP program. He went on to say that Haiti was a horrible country, filled with violent vile people who practice voodoo and dogs and cats. He would start with deporting the Haitians in Springfield who are not good people, in fact they are vermin, animals that should be rounded up and shot.
Haitians Eating Dogs – oh my Semi-found Poem
“In Springfield,
they’re eating the dogs,
the people who came in
”
These animals
have taken over” Springfield
and are “walking off,”
with people’s pets.
“They’re eating the cats.
They’re eating
the pets of the people
that live there.”
and this
is what’s
happening in our country.
We’re going
to get these people out,”
These animals
from Haiti are sick weirdos,
totally disgusting vermin.
The local police
should be arresting them
but they are too afraid
of the woke radical leftist mob
and the rabid pro-open borders media.
They kill cats, dogs,
and ducks
and eat them
as part of their satanic
Voodoo ceremonies.
Why won’t comrade Kamala
apologize to the country
for letting these Haitian thugs
into the country
in the first place?
Is she a secret voodoo believer?
Her father was from Jamaica
they voodoo there too.
I am told
Thanks to Sandra
the cat was saved.
On day one of my Presidency,
we will deport
all the Haitians in the US,
Starting with Springfield,
Ground zero of the
Haitian Voodoo invasion,
and we will also
make Voodoo illegal.”
A local Haitian activist said
a visit from Trump
“would be like rubbing sandpaper
covered with salt
on an open wound,”
” they continue to dehumanize the Haitian community,
just like this country vilified the Germans and Italians
Donald Trump Cat and Duck AI Images, also known as Donald Trump Cat Memes, Cats For Trump or Ducks For Trump, refers to a series of AI-generated images showing former United States President Donald Trump holding cats and ducks, often rescuing them or running away with the animals, that are then “supporting” him in the 2024 Presidential Election. The artificial intelligence images went viral in early September 2024 as part of a rumor about Haitian immigrants in Ohio purportedly eating pets, notably including a neighbor’s cat and geese, which were then used by Trump supporters to joke about the recent influx of Haitians in the country. Despite local authorities refuting the claims of Haitian immigrants eating people’s animals, the AI pictures depicting Trump rescuing them were widely spread on social media, particularly on X / Twitter.
One of the earliest pieces of memetic content was posted by X[1] user @TrumpsRare that same day, who shared an AI-generated video of Donald Trump kissing a duck captioned, “I love you. I would never let the Haitians eat you.” The upload (shown below) received over 2.3 million views, 8,1700 reposts and 57,000 likes in one day.
Spread
Several AI images depicting Donald Trump saving cats and ducks from people (presumably intended to depict Haitian immigrants) started to appear across X, Reddit and TikTok in the following days after the rumor gained traction on social media in early September 2024.
For example, on September 9th, 2024, the X[2] page @JudiciaryGOP posted an AI montage showing Trump hugging a kitty and a goose while he’s in the water, captioning it with, “Protect our ducks and kittens in Ohio!” The tweet (seen below) amassed more than 67 million views, 7,900 reposts and 32,000 likes in a day.
Also on September 9th, Redditor[3] Ok-Star-6787 posted an AI image of Trump holding two kittens while running away from two men, captioning the post, “For Trump to save your neighborhood cats.” The post (seen below) received roughly 275 upvotes and 38 comments in a day.
On the same day, TikTok[4] user @teamwork200000 posted a video featuring cats wearing “cats for rump” hats (seen below), which garnered over 10,000 plays and 1,600 likes in a day.
The Trump catmemes were also mentioned by Congressman Eric Swalwell on September 10th, 2024, which was later uploaded on X[5] by the page @townhallcom (seen below). In the video, Swalwell calls out @JudiciaryGOP AI image featuring Trump holding a kitty and a goose, saying “You’re tweeting this nonsense.” The post amassed more than 196,000 views and 1,400 likes in a few hours.
The Honorable Kamala Harris
Vice President of the United States
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, D.C. 20500
Dear Vice President Harris,
I want to compliment you and your running mate, Tim Walz. You are off to a great start, and I’m confident you will win the election. I like your optimistic, can-do attitude and joy.
Let’s Expand the Number of States
I have a few suggestions for themes that I think you should emphasize to excite voters and right some historic wrongs. It is time for you to call for expanding the United States by increasing the number of states to about 75. Additionally, the House of Representatives membership should be expanded to reflect population changes, doubling the number of Representatives to about 750 representatives, and the number of senators should be increased to represent the new states of America.
It is long overdue to expand the voting franchise to all American citizens, regardless of the territories they live in. In short, it is time to grant statehood to American Samoa, DC, Guam, Micronesia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. To make this work politically, you should also give Republicans some safe states. I suggest splitting New York State into two states: New York State and the New York City metro area. Similarly, split Illinois into a Chicago state and the rest of Illinois, and divide California into five new states: San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento Area, Los Angeles, Southern California, Central Valley, and Northeast California. Additionally, create the State of Jefferson consisting of NE California, Southern Oregon, Eastern Oregon, and Eastern Washington. Split Texas into five new states centered on Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth, El Paso, Houston, and San Antonio.
Expand and Protect Voting Rights
Coupled with the expansion of the United States into these new territories, I recommend expanding voting rights as follows:
Make the federal election a national holiday.
Make Election Day a 24/7 event, with early voting starting two weeks before the election and ending at midnight the day after the election. Vote counting should begin immediately after the last vote has been cast, and results should be announced within 24 hours.
Require voter ID by issuing registered voters state-level photo IDs, which should be the only ID needed at the polling place. Voters should establish their eligibility to vote once upon registration, including showing a residence that could include homeless shelters or the local voting precinct site for the homeless. People should be allowed to cast their vote at any precinct in the state.
I also recommend standardizing procedures regarding absentee ballots, making them available upon a simple no-fault request, and requiring that they be received no later than close of business on the day after the election. Drop-off boxes should be available everywhere.
Additionally, stop the automatic purging of voting rolls to ensure that the right to vote is secure from partisan attacks. Allow same-day registration and registration at the DMV. State legislatures should not be able to overturn the popular vote.
All of these measures would make elections fair and secure, neutralizing attacks on the election integrity of the US.
Finally, I recommend keeping the idea of voting rights front and center as one of the key issues in the election. These issues, I believe, are winning issues that will help compel you over the finish line and end the appeal of Trumpism.
I hope you can take these suggestions seriously. Thank you and good luck.
Sincerely,
Jake Cosmos Aller
Retired US Foreign Service Officer
P.S. I was born in Berkeley, California, and I also went to Thousand Oaks Elementary School, though a few years before you did. I’m so proud as a Berkeley native son and as a Thousand Oaks alum to be supporting you. It is about time a California Bay Area person becomes President of the United States.
P.P.S. I also urge you to prioritize climate change as a critical issue that requires immediate and sustained action to ensure a sustainable future for all. Additionally, expanding access to healthcare is crucial to improving the well-being of all Americans.
Email: Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a direct email address. However, you can contact them through the form on their contact page.
Dear Developers,
I am writing to you regarding the reinvention of shopping malls. The shopping mall, which dominated shopping in the United States and Europe from the late ’50s until around 2005, has been in decline worldwide. In the U.S., the birthplace of the modern shopping mall, there are over 1500 malls still in existence, and there may only be around 150 left in a few years.
Main reasons for the decline of the Shopping Mall
The main reason for the decline in the shopping mall is because they were based on a fundamentally flawed understanding of human nature. People like to go out, to experience life in a variety of settings. They like convenience, having everything in one place. The mall divorced shopping, walling it off as a separate experience from going to the doctor, or seeing a movie, or eating in a nice restaurant, or shopping for groceries, or going to a sporting event. And malls were not located within walking distance of housing, employment, schools, medical facilities, or near public transit, usually at the ex-urban end of a metropolitan area. Meaning that going to a mall was for many people inconvenient, and expensive when you add in gas, parking, and other expenses.
Best Malls are a multi-use town center
The best malls, on the other hand, brought together services, retail, medical, dental, shopping including grocery shopping, multiple entertainment options, and were located relatively close to housing, community centers, schools, and transit options. In short, a mall focused solely on shopping without much else was doomed to fail when consumer shopping shifted from going to the mall to going online for most things.
No longer cool destinations
Malls went from being “cool” to being seen as old-fashioned, crowded, expensive, and dangerous, with fear of crime and also the possibility of terrorism. Not to mention most people when they go out want to accomplish a lot of things, not just shopping. Malls contained shopping but not much else to do, the restaurant choices were the usual sad corporate clones, many did not have grocery stores, few had medical and other facilities, entertainment options were limited as well.
Difficult to get to for many people – located at the extreme fringes of the urban areas
Many malls were inconvenient to get to for many people located on the far fringes of the metro area. Just for one example, if you live in Berkeley or Oakland, the nearest malls are in Emeryville or out past Vacaville or in Walnut Creek or in suburban San Jose. In any event, almost impossible to access via public transit and expensive to drive to given the price of gas.
Real Town Centers are the Way to Go
It is obvious that the malls have to be reinvented and reimagined for the changing environment that they are facing. Among one idea that has become quite popular is known as the Town Center idea. This means that the shopping mall would be reinvented as a mini central downtown, with parking lots on the edge providing secured, safe, covered parking. The town center would have medical, dental, services, as well as shopping, including grocery shopping, enhanced entertainment options and ideally be within walking distance of housing, employment centers, and have enhanced public transit. Many would also include housing on site as well as hotels and hospital clinics on site as well.
The more successful malls in the US fit this mold. I am thinking of Tysons, Pentagon City, Bethesda Mall in the DC area, the Mall of the Americas in Minnesota, and several malls in Southern California.
Learn from the East Asian Experience
On a side note, most shopping malls in Asia have long followed these trends and are true mini-commercial centers co-located with housing, services, and usually located on a subway line.
Springfield Mall VIrginia – Still a tired run down Mall despite re-development
Two malls in suburban Virginia present contrasting models for re-developing a mall. In the first example, Springfield Mall announced a major re-development into a town center. But what they ended up with was a half-ass transformation. Instead of gutting it and rebuilding it they rebuild parts of the Mall but kept the overall mall intact.
The mall is still a tired, old run-down mall but with additional parking. Same tired corporate clone restaurants etc. The movie theater has luxury seats and reserved seating and sells beer and wine. On the other hand, it is walking distance from both the metro, housing, and lots of big box stores nearby, and several hotels also walking distance nearby. Lots of strip malls adjacent as well as not being too far from COSTCO. No medical or other services though and limited entertainment options. I would give it a C although the initial idea was promising.
Landmark Mall Town Center – A good initial plan
In the second example, the Landmark Mall, they gutted the entire mall and are rebuilding it from the ground up. The new mall will feature a full-service hospital, housing, hotels, retail, offices, and enhanced restaurants and entertainment options, and feature bus shuttles to the nearby Metro, Mark Center, and the Pentagon. At least according to the announcement, it should be a real town center rather than the half-assed Springfield Town Center. Not really walkable to other nearby adjacent shopping areas or restaurants though, which is a big negative at least for me.
I would give this one a B.
Install Solar power, mini-wind turbines and water harvesting systems now
All the big shopping malls are missing a big opportunity – they all should be installing solar power, mini-wind turbines, and water harvesting systems and be close to 100 percent carbon neutral. They should also have enhanced recycling and enhanced public transit. Governments should be encouraging such widespread expansion of solar, wind, and water harvesting systems as an essential element in battling climate change.
Build affordable housing as part of the re-developed Town Center
One more idea to consider is that these new town centers should offer reduced rent to people living at the mall to reduce commuting times for people who live in or near the mall. This is in line with the urban planner’s mantra which I fully subscribe to of making everything within 15 minutes from your house.
I hope you find these insights useful in your future developments. I look forward to seeing how you will reinvent and reimagine these spaces.
Smoke On the Water
Oh the stupid, it hurts so much!!!!
California Burning Politicians Do Nothing
Climate Change Busso
Climate Change Aquarian Poem
the Fire that Almost Destroyed Medford, Oregon
Summer of Our Discontent
Snow Day
Summertime Blues
Save the Whales from Evil Wind Farms
No More Fireworks
No Rain
Ice Age 2.0 Cometh writing com
Korean Heat Dome Blues
Hell on Earth
Do you believe in Climate change ?
Meta and Co-Pilot additional background reading
Donald Trump On Climate Change
Ten Years After Climate Change Collapse
Climate Cities 75 Years In The Future.
I wrote this on a sweltering hot July day in Medford, Oregon where it has been hitting record heat waves for weeks over 100 (38 C) almost every day, which is unusual for the summer where it seldom gets above 95 F (35 C) except for one or two days in August.
This is a two-part challenge.
Part One =Describe your Criteria for the New Cities
The first part of the challenge is to outline your criteria of what would happen if climate change gets so out of control in about 10 years that underground dome cities have to be built to host some human beings, unfortunately. Most people will not be able to be accommodated in the “climate change cities”
What would be the criteria for selecting those fortunate enough to move into the new cities? How will the cities be built? Would they be built under a Dome or they’d be built entirely underground? or built partially underground or a combination of Both? How will people be chosen to live in these underground cities? Who will be left behind? And what happens to those left behind as climate change spins out of control?
Part 2 Write a story about a family in one of these climate cities, 75 years in the future, who is confronted with the fact that they have to leave their cocoon and enter into the outer world.
What happens when they encounter the wastelands left behind by climate change out-of-control? Show us their world both in the Climate City and as they encounter the wastelands outside their bubble. I will judge the stories on the basis of how the story tells the story of how humans coped with the essential crisis posed by climate change. The more creative the better. Show us the horror of the future coming at us and how people survive the climate apocalypse. 2,000-word limit posted on the top line of the story.
Criteria for climate change cities.
Ten years in the future 2035 it has become so obvious that climate change is completely out of control and the world is becoming uninhabitable for normal human life.
In 2028 at a World Climate Crisis conference, governments decide to to set up Climate Change Cities which would be semi-domed cities to host 25 percent of the population of the world. However. It is impossible to host everybody, and 75 percent of the world’s population will have to fend for itself. Climate change cities take five years to build and many millions of people die in the meantime as fast storms take hold. Drought and heat take their toll on the world’s population, and agriculture and world trade fail everywhere. The first cities open in 2035. At the same time, lunar and Martian colonies are set up that will host about one million people as well. AI programs help with the design of new cities and space colonies.
Governments announce the criteria for resettlement. Half of those chosen will be chosen by an AI review to identify the best and the brightest human beings worth saving. They would be joined by people chosen by random lottery. The upper age limit will be 75. 50 percent will be male and 50 percent female, and at least in the U.S. there would be an effort to make it racially balanced, and LGBTQ friendly as well. The AI program will make the final decision which will not be reviewable by the courts. All chosen will have one year to move to the city the AI program chose for them. Similar criteria will be used to select Lunar and Martian colonies. Governments around the world will help share best practices and share technology.
They will build domes over existing cities and then build underground vast fields to host farms where they will grow food, chicken, rabbits, and fish. Cattle will not be raised due to space considerations. Each city will host one million people. There would be 100 such cities throughout the U.S., and several hundred cities worldwide hosting about 400 million people in total, plus one million people on the Moon and Mars.
The cities will be chosen to be located far enough from the coast to avoid flooding. Space would be at a premium and there would be strict population controls because the cities would not be able to accommodate any population increase. The cities will be linked with hype-loop trains to facilitate travel and trade, and internet cables. This hyper-loop will link all cities in North America, Latin America, and Europe. Asian Cities will be linked by their hyper-loops as well. There would still be airports to facilitate international travel and some trade and spaceports to facilitate travel to the Moon and beyond.
Joe Lewis Leaves the Medford Dome on his Birthday
Joe Lewis was spending his 20th birthday on his duty station at the Medford, Oregon Climate Change City Command Center. His job is very simple to monitor via drones the wasteland world outside the gate of the city to monitor it for possible dangers to the city, including human activity outside the City Dome. But there were almost no human beings left alive on the surface and not much animal life either. So he would watch the monitors, read a bit, watch TV, movies, the Internet, and wait for his boring shift to end. But that day, he saw in the distance a strange person walking towards the city. He saw a man dressed in dark black clothes, accompanied by a large black dog heading towards the city. When the man got to the city, he put up a sign saying he was there to negotiate with the people of the city. He had important information to impart to the city residents. He was unarmed and would wait for their decision. Joe woke up his superiors as it was early in the morning and a conference was held as to what to do with the stranger.
His boss, the enigmatic Maria Lee. Open the morning conference by asking Joe. To describe what had happened that morning during his watch.
“Well, this morning around. 5:00 in the morning, I notice a stranger coming from Eagle Point. A black man dressed in black. Accompanied by a dog heading towards the Dome. When he came to the Dome, he stopped and put up a sign saying that he had important information to report to the city residents. And then he would wait for a decision and he’s outside right now, as you can see from the drone pictures. That’s all I know.”
Maria turns to her chief data scientist, Dale Smith,
“Dale, you’ve been monitoring the conditions outside for the last year or so. What can you tell us about it?”
“ Well. It appears that the climate is finally starting to change in a good direction. Last year, the average temperature has been what used to be seasonal before climate change warmed up the world. In other words, not too hot up to no more than 90° and relatively, dry. We’ve also noticed by looking at. Camera footage there has been a resurgence of wildlife, lots of deer. wild cattle, wild horses have come back. And there are also increased predators, lions, tigers and wolves outside.
But not too many humans around. I asked Cosmos to take a look at data from across the United States, and the data is all pointing in the same direction. For the last five years, the climate has been changing in our favor and AI recommends that we consider moving back to the surface world. And AI had also recommended that we get in touch with people around the world to compare notes to see if perhaps finally, climate change is over.”
“Well. Cosmos, do you have an opinion on this?
“Yes, Maria, I do. I have been monitoring, at your request, climate change data worldwide for the last five years, and particularly in the last few weeks.
The climate is changing in our favor, because for the last 70 years we have not been pumping climate-changing gases into the atmosphere The atmosphere is gradually recovering and we believe that the world is safe again for human. Inhabitants and recommend that we open the Dome. And let our people go outside. It would be good from a psychological point of view for humans to gain the surface world. And I, as your AI overlord, agree that it is time. You can manage to step outside again.”
“Okay, let’s let the stranger in and see what he has to say”
The stranger is brought inside the Dome conference center. Maria said to him,
“So you have important information to tell us? Who are you and where are you coming from?’
“ Good morning to you. Do you have any coffee?”
“Sure. We have some. Wait a moment please,”
“Ah, that is good. Okay. I am a monk from the Monastery near Eugène where we have been living since the fall of the old world. We have been living simply, but we monitor the world outside our little community in the mountains. We do not live in the Dome but are in contact with the people in the Eugene Dome. They suggested contacting you, as you are the biggest Dome community in Oregon outside of Portland.”
Maria and the Reverend Jones spoke for hours Finally, Maria summoned her staff to announce her decision.
Maria began
“I would like to thank the good Father here for coming to our town this morning to let us know his observations. They track Cosmos’s observations and what our friends in Eugene, Portland, and Reading are telling us as well. It is time finally for humans to leave the Dome cities behind and explore the greater world. What we will do is continue to live and work in the Dome City but gradually rebuild outside the walls of the Dome. We will hunt, fish, and begin agriculture outside the gates. But we will be wary of wild animals as lions, tigers, and wolves are around. And we can lift the restrictions on childbirth. Let today be known as Liberation Day.”
That day Joe stepped outside the Dome and looked at the new world feeling he was born again. What a way to celebrate his birthday, he thought to himself.
Climate Change Makes world increasingly uninhabitable.
Climate change has finally become real – large parts of the world are now uninhabitable. Governments around the world begin building domed cities that will house most people, conditions will be a bit grim but the dome will cool off the city and allow regular scheduled rainfall. Most of the city will be underground.
Most agriculture will be underground as well. The only meat products will be chicken meat, rabbit meat, and fish raised in large fish pounds. Most food would be made out of algae, and vegetable protein.
There will be no beef made but some products will be fake beef grown in labs.
25 percent of the population will work in agricultural production. Everyone will live in apartments in large towers. In between each tower will be parks and gardens. The towers will be mixed used buildings – commercial and retail on lower floors, offices middle of the building, apartments on top. People will largely live and work in the same building. Agriculture will be in vast underground fields that are connected to the city dome by underground rail lines. Each dome city is linked to other dome cities by hyperloop trains.
Population will have to limited; childbirth limited. Sexual relations would be liberalized, most people will live with two or three companions in three-to-four-bedroom apartments.
The Dome cities go up and within ten years 90 percent of humanity are living in one of the Dome cities – the world is finally united under a revised United Nations.
Immigration is widespread – everyone can move to another domed city and find employment opportunities. Everyone has to work or attend school. Robotic technology has taken over many jobs but humans are still given jobs doing things that perhaps robots could do but a decision was made that is important that everyone has some sort of employment until age 70 when people are allowed to retire but many continue to work part
Space exploration has continued and colonies are being set up on the Moon and Mars – where people will live under domed cities as well.
The domes are created through nano technology. AI systems are everywhere. There is a global AI called Cosmos that is an official advisor to the UN and corporations.
Democracy has been replaced by a new governmental structure. Each Dome city has been ten to thirty million people are governed by a city council elected by the public but the real power is the city’s mayor and the City’s AI advisor.
There are twenty regional governments that control the dome cities within their jurisdictions. Corporations have considerable influence but are under the control of the regional governments. Worldwide trade has been greatly reduced due to the costs of transportation.
Life outside the domed cities is difficult. Climate Change has finally subsided as the new cities are self sufficient powered by solar, wind, geothermal and tidal power as the cities are mostly along costal zones. The rest of the world has reverted to a wilderness, mostly desert regions but with ending of climate change things are slowly coming back.
A few people live on in the new wilderness area as hunters, and tour guides as taking a trip to the mountains is a popular pastime and hunting as well. But no one wants to live there. The punishment for most criminal offenses is exile so many of the people living outside the dome cities are desperate criminals. Travel to and from the mountains is very difficult and dangerous with attacks by neo-savage gangs and wildlife common.
But the decision has been made – humanity cannot go back to the old ways.
Ten Years After Climate Change Collapse
Sam Adams
Prepared to go outside
Ten years after the collapse
Of the old world.
The city was still standing
But most people had long fled
To isolated country communities
Deep in the burned-out countryside.
The city was half-flooded
The bay had flooded the central valley
Turning it into a massive inland sea,
The massive storms
Had finally put out
The burning fires
But mutant wildfires
Still erupted
From time to time.
Getting food and water
Was a constant problem
The city markets
Mostly sold canned goods
Salvaged from supermarkets.
There were some small farmers
Who farmed among the ruins
Of the city.
Trade had collapsed
Travel got too complicated
COVID still spreading
Everyone masked up
To protect themselves
Against the sun
The lingering smoke
Of the burning city
And the rampaging virus.
Sam Adams
Looked out at the decaying cityscape,
Wondering how much longer
Will civilization linger.
Sam Adams carried heat
To protect himself
Against wild animals.
The lions, tigers, coyotes, wolves,
And their running feral dog gangs,
Who prowled the city streets
Preying on deer, feral cows,
feral cats and pigs
Who grazed among the ruins.
And the two-legged neo-savage gangs,
And what was left of the city police
Interchangeable with the gangsters,
Battled it out for control.
Already neo-feudal warlords,
We’re battling for control,
SF was run
By a gang of former criminals
And their political allies.
Sam sighed
And went to work
At the market
Selling salvaged goods.
The Lion King Speaks Up
The lion king,
Addresses the animal parliament
The question before them
Was simple.
Will humans have to die,
To atone for their sins,
In almost destroying the world.
Through pollution, mismanagement of resources
Subsequent climate change,
Fueled by greed and corruption?
Are all humans guilty as charged
Will they all have to die?
The tiger spoke for the prosecution
Arguing that humans are like cancer,
For the good of the planet,
They must be wiped out
Hunted down and killed,
The dog spoke up
In defense of humans,
Humans writ large are guilty,
But not every human is guilty,
Many are trying to save the planet,
And with our help
They might succeed,
The tiger denounced the dog
As being running dogs
Of the imperialist warmongering humans.
The vote is 900 to 800
All humans must die
The animals sent the word out,
Animals all over the world,
Revolt against the humans.
Shouting
“Death to all humans’
As the swarm over humans
Biting, clawing, and stomping
Them to the death.
The humans fight back
But in the end
They all die
On the night of revenge
Of the animal world.
the world is ending.
Every morning when I turn on the news
I see talking heads blather on and on and on
about the latest political scandal of the day.
Meanwhile, outside their door
they don’t notice the world is dying
half the world is burning up.
The other half is being flooded out
Pakistan is dead is drowned
Mississippi has no water.
Every morning when I turn on the news
I see talking heads blather on and on and on
about the latest political scandal of the day.
and yet watching the news
you would never know
outside their door
people are dying of hunger.
dying of gun violence
dying of neglect dying of opioid pandemic
dying of COVID which is not gone away.
Every morning when I turn on the news
I see talking heads blather on and on and on
about the latest political scandal of the day.
Outside their door
people continue to die
gun violence out of control.
gun nuts running around
shooting everyone
just because they can
and no one does a damn thing
about the gun violence
50,0000 will die this year.
Our feckless political class
Think gun violence
it’s just like the weather
it’s the cost of our freedom
or that guns don’t kill people
The only solution is more guns
An armed society is a polite society.
and other nonsense
they pedal
24/7 on the air.
Every morning when I turn on the news
I see talking heads blather on and on and on
about the latest political scandal of the day.
outside their door
people continue to die.
the war in Ukraine continues
endless wars in nameless African countries
no one cares or notices
Our political leader
Continue to try to force
pregnant women to give birth
no matter the circumstances.
but once the baby is born
they don’t give a damn
that is not their problem.
And these people
Dare to call themselves Christian
As they violate all that true Christians
Are supposed to believe.
Every morning when I turn on the news
I see talking heads blather on and on and on
about the latest political scandal of the day.
Some of our political leaders
Are unhinged bats… crazy
Believing conspiracy theories.
Talking about the storm
And how if they return to power
They are going to impeach the president.
For the crime of daring to do something
To deal with the climate crisis
The gun violence crisis
And ensuring that women
Can continue to get health care
Every morning when I turn on the news
I see talking heads blather on and on and on
about the latest political scandal of the day.
I turn off the TV
I wonder if the world
is going to survive.
I have a cup of coffee
slowly the madness of TV
fades away.
Climate Change Running Amuck
Every morning when I turn on the news
I see talking heads blather on and on and on
about the latest political scandal of the day.
Every day the news
Reveals more of the disaster
That is climate change
Unprecedented storms
Out west
Massive flooding
Polar vortex
But soon
The fire season
Will return
Monster tornados
Monster hurricanes
World heating up
Pakistan, Nigeria
Ethiopia underwater
Amazon burning up
Or will the gulf stream fail
Leading to a new ice age
In ten years
Perhaps the world
Will become uninhabitable
Will we all move
Into underground cities?
Or move to the moon
And Mars?
Only The Elders Remembered a Blue Sky.
Only the elders
Remembered a blue sky
The sky has been brown,
Red and yellow
Ashen and sere,
Forever it seems.
Climate change run amok
Fire season all the time
Deadly yellow dust falling
Acid rains burning
The sea levels rising
The ice capes melting.
The average temperature
In the summer heat zone
Over 130 everywhere
No relief to the deadly
Heatwaves all year long.
Air conditioning running
Less than 50 percent
Constant brownouts everywhere
As the electric grid failed.
End of civilization
Came upon the world
Millions starve to death
Millions burning up in the heat.
The elders cry
Remembering the way
It once was
When they wore
A younger person’s clothes.
Smoke On the Water
Smoke on the water
fire in the air
Stormy weather
Climate change run amuck
The end of the world comes
Rustling in the wind.
The Stupid It Hurts – Republican Campaigning to cripple the CDC and EPA Budgets Because of reasons…
The Republicans have decided
that given the continuing problems
with possible health concerns
like CDC and future pandemics
that the best thing to do is to cut
the CDC’s budget’s
including eliminating research
on gun violence, suicide prevention
opioid overdoes etc
.
one republican congressman said
that CDC did not need to research
gun violence at all
He spoke
“if you defund the police, crime will increase
if you fund police crime will decrease.
There I just did the study
that’s all you need to know.
on a related issue
the House voted
as they went off
for a six-week summer recess
to cut the EPA’s budget
by 25 percent
as the entire West Coast burns up
climate change on steroids
the republicans continue
to deny the elephant in the room
some like their annotated one
promising to eliminate
all funding for climate change
and vowing to Drill, Baby, Drill
calling for the coal and gas companies
to give them a billion dollars
so they can gut all efforts
to deal with climate change
as the coal and gas companies
raped the planet
for obscene profits
meanwhile
the world burns
and soon we will all
for forced to live
in underground caves
if we are lucky enough
or rich enough to afford
access to the shelters
which no doubt have to be built
in a few more years from now
the coal and gas companies
will find a way to make money
off the climate shelters no doubt.
Oh the stupid it hurts
make it go away!!!!!
California Burning Politicians Do Nothing
California burning
1000 fires everywhere
fire tornados
smoky skies
skies on fire
end-of-the-world feeling
politicians do what they do best
blame one another
while doing absolutely nothing
while the energy companies
continue to rape mother earth
and reap obscene profits
meanwhile
California continues burning
1,100 fires everywhere
fire tornados
smoky skies
skies on fire
end-of-the-world feeling.
Climate Change Busso Poem Fan Story
California burns
politicians do nothing
west coast burning up
politicians do nothing
except calling for denying it all
Drill, baby, Drill indeed
Climate Change is Real Aquarian
Climate
Change happening
California burning
So hot
▼the Fire that Almost Destroyed Medford, Oregon
40
I have been spending
my summers
In Medford, Oregon.
In the Rogue River Valley
Southern Oregon
Wine Country.
Since 2016,
When I retired
From the FS.
Each year I am there
There are fires
Starting in August.
As the fire season begins
Burning up the state.
The sky becomes smokey
End-of-the-world vibe
Descends on the land.
As the fires burn
In California, Oregon
And Washington
Millions of acres burning up.
Climate change
Running amuck.
Fortunately, we have not lost
Property in the fires.
But in 2020
The Alameda Fire
Burned down Phoenix
And Talent.
Less than 2 miles
From our Oregon home,
Just a fortunate change in the wind
Kept the fires
From sweeping through
life in the world gone mad.
Ravaged by climate change disasters.
On July 18, A.D. 64, the great fire of Rome started. By the time it ended, over 70% of the city had burned.
In its aftermath, emperor Nero blamed the Christian community in the city, and used the excuse to start the first official persecution against the new religion. Historians are divided over the actual cause of the fire, though most agree the crowded conditions made such a disaster nearly inevitable.
Some contemporaries suggested that Nero himself arranged for the fire in order to clear the land on which he later built himself an elaborate palace. And according to some ancient historians, Nero played his lyre as he watched the flames, from which we get the saying “fiddling while Rome burned.”
For tomorrow, write a story or poem in which your narrator/protagonist is an ordinary/common person caught in a major fire.
While the fire as a whole will be the “backdrop” of your work, focus the action on the local/individual experience of the narrator, not that “big picture”. For example, if you set your piece in the Great Fire of Rome, don’t focus on who started the fire or what the civil or imperial politics were, instead, focus on the “personal snapshot” of, for instance, a local shopkeeper and his family who are trying to escape the flames.
Summer of Our Discontent
38 lines
the summer solstice arrives
The summer of 2024
Starting with a bang
Record heat everywhere.
Promising to be the
The hottest summer ever.
Heat domes settling down
Death Valley temperatures
People dying as we speak.
Too much sunshine
Too much heat and humidity.
Wildfires burning all over.
Monster Hurricanes, monsoons,
tornados and typhoons
floods everywhere.
coming at us
By mid-summer.
As the world continues
Burning up.
Cities everywhere
Running out of fresh water.
Heading towards
A potential civilization
Ending tipping point.
Ritual denunciation
By the rabid right-wing media
Of the so-called
Climate change hoax.
Politicians vowing
To undo the green energy revolution
And drill baby, drill.
Meanwhile oil companies
Enjoying record profits,
And nothing meaningful
Is done to avert the looming crisis
Facing the human race.
summer solstice
sunshine
heat
midsummer
ritual
Snow Day
29
The beginning of the second Ice Age
Started with a series of unending
Monster winter storms,
Driven by the polar vortex.
Featuring bomb cyclone blizzards,
That hit the Northern Hemisphere
During the winter of 2024.
And continued until late spring,
When a series of monster hurricanes
Came along to cause more chaos.
The winter storms came back in the fall,
Ending, then reversing global warming,
Replaced by the coming
Of the second ice age.
During the first storm,
Sam Adams sat in his power-less
Historic Capitol Hill row house,
Boiling tea in a tea kettle on the gas stove.
With his favorite Kitten
He dubbed the Buddha Cat
Because the cat spends his days
Engaged in deep meditation.
Which had a calming
Impact on Sam
Who was going
Through cell phone withdrawal
Due to the long power outage.
Make the title of your static item Snow Day
Include a kitten and a tea kettle in your story or poem (and bold them)
Use Pets as one of your genres.
Summertime Blues
The weather is hot and humid
In Korea like a sauna
In the West Coast, burning up
In endless fires
Death Valley temperatures
Save the Whales from Evil Wind Farms
33
In the latest deranged attempt
To prevent widespread use
Of renewal energy technology,
A new battle cry has emerged.
Cynical corporate opponents
of offshore wind farms
Are up in arms over the wind farms
Apparently killing whales.
They scream,
“Save the whales
Save our beaches
From the evil wind farms”,
They descend upon
A coastal village in New Jersey
The atmosphere of a tiny village is gone
A large building emerge
Environmental friendly fences
Surround the site.
That hosts the anti-wind farm
Movement headquarters
Secretly funded by
The evil fossil fuel dinosaurs.
The town and nation
Dividing into those
Who love it
Or hate it.
As evil corporate CEOs
Count their obscene profits
As they shed crocodile tears,
Over the fate of the poor whales.
Use in your poem or story the following: Bold it for tomorrow’s judge!
The atmosphere of a tiny village is gone
large buildings appear
environmental friendly fences
love it or hate it.
No More Fireworks
25 lines
In the summer
Of 2023
There were signs
Everywhere
“No more fireworks”
Due to climate change
July 4th festivities
Were canceled
The entire west
Was burning up
As wildfires burned
Out of control
All over the world
A sense that things
Were spinning out
Of control
The end times
Were coming
For everyone
Hell on earth
Was beginning
The end of times
Coming
Fast and furious
Revelations coming true
Use “No More Fireworks” as the title of your story or poem (and static item). Choose HOLIDAY as one of your genres.
{n 2025, the world ended
With the collapse
Of the worldwide climate system
Monster storms of the century
devastated half the world
But the other half of the world
Had no rain or snow
For almost a whole year
The once green grass was dying
Crops failed everywhere
And baked in the unrelenting
Blast wave furnace-like heat
Heatwave after heatwave
Military coups took place
Fascism re-emerged
The public demanded action
The politicians played
The blame game
With the collapse of trade
And travel restrictions
People stayed home
Making do the best they could
Home-grown gardens
Proliferated
Feudal townships grew
As people walled themselves off
To save their communities
The rich build underground cities
While the poor starved
And civilization crumbled
Wild life proliferated
As did neo-savage
cannibal gangs
By the year 2030
It was all over
And the rains
Never came out west
Ice Age 2.0 Cometh
40 lines
In the year 2025
Climate change
Ran amuck.
Starting with monster storms
Out west
That lasted from November until June,
With a brief intense fire season
So much soot and smoke
in the air.
dubbed the year
without a summer
crops failed everywhere
massive riots erupted
total chaos
Then another
monster storm season
From November to June.
Non=stop rain and snow
Breaking all records.
As the entire West coast
Went from mega drought
To mega flooding.
And mega floods
Thousand-year Tornados
Hurricanes from hell
Ravaged the rest of the land.
Hell on Earth
Sam Adams
Woke up one day
Looking out at his flooded home.
Filled with black, foul-smelling, murky,
Miasma, muddy sewage water
Thanking God
That he had survived
The monster storm
Of the century.
That has swept across the land.
The wind from the terrible tornados
Tearing through the devastated land.
Fleeing the fury of the fire out west.
Unleashing the fury of nature,
Truly Hell on earth had arrived.
Climate change arriving on steroids.
Thinking about the end-of-the-world.
new prompt:
water
land
fire
wind
Use the elements mentioned above in your poem or story.
Do you believe in Climate change ?
18 lines
Do you believe in climate change?
It is as real as everything else
Is the weather getting hotter?
Soon it will be hell on earth.
Is the world burning up?
Yes the world is burning, has a a fever
What is the worst weather you ever experienced?
Korean winter 1979 – -60 Fahrenheit that winter
What is the hottest weather you ever experienced?
Bangkok Thailand in the summer often hit over 100 degrees
Ever lived through a hurricane?
Only few blew through DC when I was there
And wild fires?
Saw a few in Oregon – end of the world feeling
Who is to blame for climate change?
We all are to blame especially the fossil fuel moguls.
Can humanity long survive climate change?
Nope I feel the end times are coming.
New Prompt: We are playing with the Pregunta today. Questions and answers.
Topic: the Weather.
Make sure your poem is not longer than 40 lines.
Information can be found here: “Pregunta”
The Pregunta
There is not much to be found on the Internet about this form. It is used in English, but has a Spanish name, as Pregunta means question.
Ferrán Sanchez Talavera’s pregenital___999 is a famous example of a poetic debate in this form. I also saw this form on Jan Haag’s page; questions followed by a witty but often wise answer.
Simply stated:
The Pregunta is written in couplets, containing a question and an answer. You can make it as long as you like, as a debate never stops after one question and answer.
Korean Heat Dome Blues
It is hot summertime in Korea.
Hiding out, avoiding the damn heat.
The weather is just so hot, mama mia!
Dreaming of eating ice cream, such a treat.
At night, nothing beats having a cold drink.
Trying to avoid the tropical night.
The heat dome settles like a hot heat sink
Making people so crazy, want to fight.
Note: Korea gets hot in July/August, it is like living in a sauna. Many people suffer without air conditioning as the electric bills are pretty high. This year is particularly bad as a heat dome has settled down. The monsoons came and went, lots of damage down south but not where I live. August is traditionally the worst, the heat usually begins to abate end of August. Still not as bad as the US – no massive wildfires so far.
Meta and Co-Pilot additional background reading
Meta AI’s explanation as to why so many Republicans are climate deniers
The Republican Party’s opposition to addressing climate change, renewable energy, and their denial of climate change is a complex issue with multiple factors at play. Here are some reasons:
Historical ties to fossil fuel industry: The Republican Party has traditionally received significant funding and support from the fossil fuel industry, which has a vested interest in maintaining the status quo.
Ideological opposition to government regulation: Republicans often prioritize limited government intervention and free market principles, which leads them to resist policies that would regulate carbon emissions or promote renewable energy.
Economic concerns: Some Republicans worry that transitioning to renewable energy would lead to job losses in industries related to fossil fuels.
Skepticism of climate science: A subset of Republicans has questioned the scientific consensus on climate change, often citing concerns about the reliability of climate models or the role of natural climate variability.
Political polarization: Climate change has become a highly politicized issue, with Republicans often viewing it as a Democratic priority and therefore opposing it.
Recent events: Despite the record-breaking heat and fires, some Republicans may downplay the significance of these events or attribute them to natural variability rather than climate change.
It’s important to note that not all Republicans deny climate change or oppose renewable energy, and there are growing voices within the party advocating for climate action.
De Santis’s Don’t Say Climate Change
Certainly! Let’s dive into Governor Ron DeSantis’s recent actions related to climate change in Florida.
The Resilient Florida program is designed to issue bonds, providing a total of $1 billion over four years to state and local agencies. The initial $25 million in the 2021-2022 budget would help finance these bonds, with the amount increasing annually until it reaches $100 million in the 2024-2025 fiscal year.
DeSantis’s focus on resilience and adaptation reflects the urgent need to address climate-related threats in Florida, a state particularly vulnerable to rising seas and extreme weather events.
“Don’t Say Climate Change” Legislation:
In May 2024, Governor DeSantis signed a bill that removes references to “climate change” from many state laws. This legislation effectively deprioritizes climate change in policy decisions and energy planning.
Under this new law, Florida’s energy policy no longer emphasizes addressing planet-warming pollution. Instead, the priorities shift toward reducing reliance on foreign energy sources and strengthening energy infrastructure against both natural and man-made threats.
By erasing the term “climate change” from state laws, Florida risks neglecting critical environmental challenges. The state has experienced record heat and costly hurricanes in recent years, making climate adaptation crucial.
The nullification of renewable energy goals—previously aimed at achieving 100% clean energy by 2050—could hinder progress toward mitigating climate impacts.
Certainly! Removing climate change references from legislation and public discourse can have several environmental consequences. Let’s explore those:
Undermining Awareness and Urgency:
When climate change is downplayed or omitted from official documents, it reduces public awareness and urgency. People may not fully grasp the severity of environmental challenges, leading to complacency.
Without clear references, individuals, businesses, and policymakers might underestimate the need for immediate action to mitigate climate impacts.
Policy Implications:
Legislation that avoids mentioning climate change may fail to address critical issues. For instance:
Carbon Emissions Reduction: Policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions
(such as transitioning to renewable energy sources) may lose priority.
Climate change adaptation involves preparing for its effects (e.g., sea-level rise, extreme weather events). Without acknowledging climate change, planning for adaptation becomes less effective.
Coastal communities, for instance, need to consider rising sea levels and storm surges. Ignoring these factors could lead to inadequate infrastructure and increased vulnerability.
Loss of Funding and Research Focus:
Funding for climate-related research, monitoring, and mitigation often hinges on acknowledging climate change. If references are removed, research budgets may shrink.
Scientists rely on clear language to secure grants and conduct studies. Reduced funding could hinder our understanding of climate impacts.
Forestry and Carbon Sinks:
Clearcutting forests—removing large areas of trees—releases substantial carbon into the atmosphere. Forests act as carbon sinks, absorbing CO₂.
In summary, removing climate change references has far-reaching consequences. It affects policy, funding, adaptation, and our ability to address urgent environmental challenges. Let’s keep the conversation going! What else would you like to explore? 🌍🌿
Certainly! While there have been significant efforts to address climate change in the United States, there have also been instances of legislation or lobbying that hindered progress. Let’s explore a few notable examples:
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022:
What it Gets Right: The IRA promises the largest investment in climate action in U.S. history—approximately $370 billion over the next decade. It focuses on scaling up renewable energy production, promoting electric vehicles, and supporting climate-smart agricultural practices.
What it Misses: Unfortunately, the IRA primarily emphasizes emission-cutting solutions and neglects resilience. While it aims to make buildings more energy-efficient, it misses an opportunity to ensure those buildings can withstand climate-fueled extremes. The lack of climate-resilient building codes remains a concern1.
In summary, while there have been positive steps toward climate action, it’s essential to remain vigilant and address any legislative or lobbying efforts that hinder progress. If you’d like more information or have other questions, feel free to ask! 🌎🌿
It’s important to note that the U.S. experiences annual variations in wildfire activity. While the current acreage burned is significant, it’s essential to compare it to historical trends.
Canada:
Canada has faced an unprecedented fire season in 2023. Large and dangerous fires have broken out across provinces such as British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia. These fires have displaced thousands, destroyed property, and blanketed large areas of North America with smoke.
As of August 29, 2024, there are 1,069 active fires in Canada, with more than half of them considered out of control. Notably, the area burned by these fires in 2023 has shattered records.
In summary, both the U.S. and Canada are grappling with significant wildfire activity. While the U.S. experiences fluctuations from year to year, Canada’s 2023 fire season stands out as historically severe. Let’s hope for effective containment efforts and continued awareness of the importance of wildfire prevention and management. If you’d like more details or have further questions, feel free to ask! 🔥🌲
The Resilient Florida program is designed to issue bonds, providing a total of $1 billion over four years to state and local agencies. The initial $25 million in the 2021-2022 budget would help finance these bonds, with the amount increasing annually until it reaches $100 million in the 2024-2025 fiscal year.
DeSantis’s focus on resilience and adaptation reflects the urgent need to address climate-related threats in Florida, a state particularly vulnerable to rising seas and extreme weather events.
“Don’t Say Climate Change” Legislation:
In May 2024, Governor DeSantis signed a bill that removes references to “climate change” from many state laws. This legislation effectively deprioritizes climate change in policy decisions and energy planning.
Under this new law, Florida’s energy policy no longer emphasizes addressing planet-warming pollution. Instead, the priorities shift toward reducing reliance on foreign energy sources and strengthening energy infrastructure against both natural and man-made threats.
By erasing the term “climate change” from state laws, Florida risks neglecting critical environmental challenges. The state has experienced record heat and costly hurricanes in recent years, making climate adaptation crucial.
The nullification of renewable energy goals—previously aimed at achieving 100% clean energy by 2050—could hinder progress toward mitigating climate impacts.
What are the environmental consequences of removing climate change references?
Copilot
Certainly! Removing climate change references from legislation and public discourse can have several environmental consequences. Let’s explore those:
Undermining Awareness and Urgency:
When climate change is downplayed or omitted from official documents, it reduces public awareness and urgency. People may not fully grasp the severity of environmental challenges, leading to complacency.
Without clear references, individuals, businesses, and policymakers might underestimate the need for immediate action to mitigate climate impacts.
Policy Implications:
Legislation that avoids mentioning climate change may fail to address critical issues. For instance:
Carbon Emissions Reduction: Policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions (such as transitioning to renewable energy sources) may lose priority.
Climate change adaptation involves preparing for its effects (e.g., sea-level rise, extreme weather events). Without acknowledging climate change, planning for adaptation becomes less effective.
Coastal communities, for instance, need to consider rising sea levels and storm surges. Ignoring these factors could lead to inadequate infrastructure and increased vulnerability.
Loss of Funding and Research Focus:
Funding for climate-related research, monitoring, and mitigation often hinges on acknowledging climate change. If references are removed, research budgets may shrink.
Scientists rely on clear language to secure grants and conduct studies. Reduced funding could hinder our understanding of climate impacts.
Forestry and Carbon Sinks:
Clearcutting forests—removing large areas of trees—releases substantial carbon into the atmosphere. Forests act as carbon sinks, absorbing CO₂.
In summary, removing climate change references has far-reaching consequences. It affects policy, funding, adaptation, and our ability to address urgent environmental challenges. Let’s keep the conversation going! What else would you like to explore? 🌍🌿
I hope this sheds light on the environmental implications of removing climate change references! If you have more questions or want to explore other topics, feel free to ask! 😊
Have there been other anti-climate legislation in the US
Copilot
Certainly! While there have been significant efforts to address climate change in the United States, there have also been instances of legislation or lobbying that hindered progress. Let’s explore a few notable examples:
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022:
What it Gets Right: The IRA promises the largest investment in climate action in U.S. history—approximately $370 billion over the next decade. It focuses on scaling up renewable energy production, promoting electric vehicles, and supporting climate-smart agricultural practices.
What it Misses: Unfortunately, the IRA primarily emphasizes emission-cutting solutions and neglects resilience. While it aims to make buildings more energy-efficient, it misses an opportunity to ensure those buildings can withstand climate-fueled extremes. The lack of climate-resilient building codes remains a concern1.
In summary, while there have been positive steps toward climate action, it’s essential to remain vigilant and address any legislative or lobbying efforts that hinder progress. If you’d like more information or have other questions, feel free to ask! 🌎🌿
It’s important to note that the U.S. experiences annual variations in wildfire activity. While the current acreage burned is significant, it’s essential to compare it to historical trends.
Canada:
Canada has faced an unprecedented fire season in 2023. Large and dangerous fires have broken out across provinces such as British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia. These fires have displaced thousands, destroyed property, and blanketed large areas of North America with smoke.
As of August 29, 2024, there are 1,069 active fires in Canada, with more than half of them considered out of control. Notably, the area burned by these fires in 2023 has shattered records.
In summary, both the U.S. and Canada are grappling with significant wildfire activity. While the U.S. experiences fluctuations from year to year, Canada’s 2023 fire season stands out as historically severe. Let’s hope for effective containment efforts and continued awareness of the importance of wildfire prevention and management. If you’d like more details or have further questions, feel free to ask! 🔥🌲
Ah, the enigmatic dance of Donald Trump and climate change—a topic that’s as unpredictable as a squirrel on a seesaw! Let’s unravel this intriguing tango, shall we? 🕺💨
Comment: Co-PIlot often surprises me with their creative wild responses. I think the debate over whether we are dealing with a real AI is over. AI is here now.
Donald Trump’s Climate Change Cha-Cha: A Brief Recap:
The Denial Shuffle: Back in the day (well, not that long ago), Trump was doing the climate cha-cha with gusto. He called climate change “mythical,” “nonexistent,” and even an “expensive hoax.” But wait, there’s more! In 2012, he famously claimed that climate change was cooked up by the Chinese to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive. (Yes, you read that right—apparently, the Great Wall wasn’t enough; they needed climate change too.)
Twitter Twirls: Trump’s Twitter feed was like a climate-themed rollercoaster. Over 120 tweets questioned or poked fun at climate change. He insisted that scientists rebranded global warming as climate change because “the name global warming wasn’t working.” (Note to self: Scientists are not marketing consultants.)
Cold Snap Samba: Trump’s favorite move? Linking cold weather to climate change. But here’s the twist: The World Meteorological Organization says the 20 warmest years on record happened in the past 22 years. So, maybe he missed that memo while tweeting from Mar-a-Lago.
Ambiguous Tango: Fast-forward to his presidency. Trump’s stance became as slippery as a salsa dancer on an ice rink. He’d acknowledge climate change but frame it in terms of clean air and water (which, by the way, aren’t directly related). And he’d throw in business costs for good measure. Because nothing says “climate action” like a spreadsheet, right?
Quotes & Quips: Let’s sprinkle some Trump quotes for flavor:
“I think there is some connectivity [between human activity and climate change]. There is some, something. It depends on how much. It also depends on how much it’s going to cost our companies.” (New York Times interview, November 2016)
“I don’t think there’s a hoax. I do think there’s probably a difference. But I don’t know that it’s man-made… I don’t wanna give trillions and trillions of dollars.” (CBS interview, October 2018)
And then he’d wink and say, “Climate change is very important to me.” (Cue the dramatic music.)
In Conclusion (or Should We Say, Grand Finale?):
Trump’s climate dance card is a mix of moonwalks, twirls, and the occasional mooning of scientific consensus.
Whether he’s a climate skeptic, a climate pragmatist, or just a climate-confused soul, one thing’s for sure: His moves keep us guessing.
And there you have it—the Trumpian climate conundrum, wrapped in a sequined bow. If you want more twists and turns, just ask—I’ve got enough material to choreograph a whole Broadway show! 🌎🎭✨
The videos first started appearing a dozen years ago. Pickup truck drivers, mostly young men, would modify their disel engines and then record themselves deliberately spreading air pollution.
It was called “rolling coal,” and the idea was to spew dark clouds of exhaust at bicyclists, Prius and Tesla drivers and other cars as a protest of environmentalism.
The trend appears to have peaked in 2014, thanks to new state laws and crackdowns on people selling vehicle modification kits and, presumably, finding better things to do with their time. But the impulse behind it lives on, even as the risks of climate change become ever more serious.
The most recent example? Project 2025, a set of conservative proposals from the Heritage Foundation that outlines step-by-step plans to remake the federal government in a second Donald Trump administration, including dismantling nearly everything the federal government is doing to fight climate change, making it dramatically harder to conduct basic scientific research on it and actively promoting more oil and gas use.
Trump has tried to distance himself from the proposals, despite the fact that some of his top former advisers spearheaded it. But it’s in line with his thinking. As The Washington Post reported, he told a gathering of top oil executives this year that he would reverse dozens of environmental regulations and stop new ones if they raised $1 billion to help him return to the White House.
‘Terrible policy and politics’: Rattner breaks down Project 2025
His campaign, meantime, targeted environmental regulations such as electric vehicle mandates in its Agenda 47, a scattershot series of videos outlining its plans for a second term. And at rallies, Trump frequently criticizes electric cars, claiming in one bizarre aside that buying one made his friend gain weight because he would eat at restaurants while it charged. Trump has also gone off on weird tangents about the risks of electric batteries on boats.
In his first “rolling coal” term, Trump rolled back or loosened nearly 100 rules and regulations on pollution, many of which set the U.S. further behind in the effort to stop the worst effects of climate change, according to a tally by The New York Times. But that record would be dwarfed by the damage that the Project 2025 proposals could do if he followed through on them, even as Monday was the hottest day ever measured by humans, according to a European Union science agency.
The 922-page document drips with disdain for what it calls “climate alarmism” that it argues is being used as propaganda for “ineffective, liberty-crushing regulations.” But its most damaging proposal looks like it would launch what amounts to a propaganda effort against climate science.
The first step is something called Schedule F, which would reclassify thousands of government workers, making it easier for the president to hire and fire them. Even if Trump were to fire only some of those workers, the shift toward politicization of lower-level government jobs would mean an exodus of experienced scientists. Those who remained might become more cautious about their research decisions to avoid trouble.
The second step is to create a job that appears to basically be an anti-climate change czar. Project 2025 proposes creating a position of “science adviser” and six senior political appointees who would be charged with “overseeing and reforming” research at the Environmental Protection Agency, emphasizing that these political overseers should be hired for their “management, oversight and execution skills,” rather than scientific expertise.
Imagine something like the final scene of an episode of “The Apprentice,” only with Trump hauling climate scientists into the boardroom to dramatically fire them. That may be exciting for the oil and gas industry and some of Trump’s supporters but not for the two-thirds of Americans in a recent Pew Research Center survey who said they support the country’s taking steps to become carbon neutral by 2050.
(If you want to understand the depth of disdain here, the section on the EPA was written by Mandy Gunasekara. The Drilled newsletter points out she’s in the famous 2015 photo of her then-boss, the late Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., holding up a snowball in the Senate as an attempt to disprove climate change.)
The report goes further, proposing dramatically downsizing the National Weather Service and leaving weather forecasting to private companies. That could hamper its ability to issue public warnings about floods, hurricanes and other dangers, just as we are seeing more intense and frequent extreme-weather events due to the human-caused increase in greenhouse gases.
The efforts would not be limited to the U.S., either. A section on foreign aid proposes rolling back efforts to help developing countries transition away from fossil fuels, arguing that they are “unachievable.” But then it goes further, arguing that the U.S. should spend taxpayer dollars persuading these countries to burn more oil and gas.
The U.S. Agency for International Development, the proposal says, “should cease its war on fossil fuels in the developing world and support the responsible management of oil and gas reserves as the quickest way to end wrenching poverty.”
Taken together, these proposals would not just make it harder to fight climate change but actively make it worse. A second Trump administration would be rolling coal on the entire planet.
This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
President Joe Biden’s exit from the 2024 presidential race, Vice President Kamala Harris appears likely to secure the Democratic Party’s nomination for president.
As vice president, Harris cast the tiebreaking vote in the passage of the Biden administration’s signature achievement on climate change, the Inflation Reduction Act.
As Yale Climate Connections contributor Barbara Grady previously reported, “The most far-reaching climate law in history, the Inflation Reduction Act is catalyzing a transition in the U.S. economy toward cleaner energy and cleaner transportation – a shift the International Energy Agency, the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and others say must happen for the world to reduce emissions of heat-trapping gases to the levels scientists say would avert the most catastrophic and irreversible climate chaos.”
Harris has made clear throughout her career that she views climate change as a significant threat. Speaking at the 2023 United Nations climate summit in Dubai, she told leaders, “Across our world, communities are choked by drought, washed out by floods, and decimated by hurricanes. Wildfire smoke darkens our skies, and rising seas threaten the lives and livelihoods of millions of people. The urgency of this moment is clear. The clock is no longer just ticking, it is banging. And we must make up for lost time.”
Related video: Trump: ‘Sick’ Kamala Harris is no Margaret Thatcher (The Telegraph)
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The Telegraph
Trump: ‘Sick’ Kamala Harris is no Margaret Thatcher
If elected president, Harris is “widely expected to try to protect the climate achievements of the Biden administration,” according to the New York Times.
In contrast, Trump has falsely called climate change a hoax. During his term as president, as Grady reported, “he overturned an estimated 100 environmental regulations and pulled the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement. He shrank the EPA and required that the words ‘climate change’ be removed from its website. On the campaign trail this time, he has repeatedly said one of his top priorities is to boost oil and gas production and free up more public land to ‘Drill, baby, drill.’”
On July 22, Harris received endorsements from several large environmental organizations, including the League of Conservation Voters Action Fund, the NRDC Action Fund, the Sierra Club Political Committee, and Clean Energy for American Action.
“The last three and a half years of the Biden-Harris administration could not contrast more starkly with Trump and other extreme MAGA Republicans, and the stakes for this election could not be higher,” the organizations wrote in a joint statement. “A second term would be far worse for our climate and our democracy.”
What is Project 2025? Trump, climate, and a second term
It also calls for drilling in the Arctic and cuts to climate change work by government agencies. That includes the U.S. Agency for International Development, which, the authors write, “should cease its war on fossil fuels in the developing world and support the responsible management of oil and gas reserves as the quickest way to end wrenching poverty and the need for open-ended foreign aid.”
For more on Trump’s climate record, read this article.
Kamala Harris and climate change
Here’s an overview of Harris’s views and actions related to climate change, sourced from news and White House reports.
She connects extreme weather to climate change.
“Every day, around the world, the impact of the climate crisis is stark and it is vivid. We are seeing it in real time,” she said in a 2023 speech. “Across our nation, we see communities choked by drought, washed out by flood, and decimated by hurricanes.” White House
She has supported the Green New Deal, a carbon fee, and increased government spending on climate change.
As a 2020 presidential candidate, her climate plan “called for a $10 trillion increase in spending over a decade.” New York Times (gift link)
“Harris also called for a ‘climate pollution fee” that would ‘make polluters pay for emitting greenhouse gases into our atmosphere,’ and she indicated that a Harris administration would strengthen its enforcement and prosecution of fossil fuel companies.” ABC News
As a U.S. senator from California, Harris co-sponsored the Green New Deal, which called for an FDR-style overhaul of the economy that would accelerate the transition from fossil fuels to clean technology. The Green New Deal has not been enacted.
She has woven climate change into foreign relations.
Harris attended the 2023 United Nations climate summit in Dubai, where “she announced a U.S. commitment to double energy efficiency and triple renewable energy capacity by 2030. At that same conference, Harris announced a $3 billion commitment to the Green Climate Fund to help developing nations adapt to climate challenges, although Politico reported that the sum was ‘subject to the availability of funds,’ according to the Treasury Department.” Grist
As vice president, “Harris argued for the allocation of $20 billion for the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, aimed at aiding disadvantaged communities facing climate impacts.” Grist
She’s a fan of heat pumps. Heat pumps use electricity to heat and cool homes and are seen as a keyway to reducing climate pollution.
“I have mad respect for those who are putting them together and installing them,” she said in a 2022 speech. White House
She regularly makes the connection between lower energy costs and renewable energy. Key quotes:
“On average, families that switch to an electric heat pump can save up to $500 a year on their energy bill. And since heat pumps do not burn oil or gas, they also mean cleaner air inside your home.” White House
“In addition to lowering costs and creating jobs, this investment will also help us fight the climate crisis.” White House
“By helping families pay the upfront cost for energy efficiency upgrades to their homes, we are also lowering energy bills, bringing down household costs, creating jobs, and fighting the climate crisis. It’s all connected.” White House
She notes that investments in renewable energy can lead to job creation. Key quotes:
“Across the country, we have created more than 175,000 new clean energy jobs. Just so far. More to go.” White House
Her Women in the Sustainable Economy initiative aims to provide job training for women in climate-smart industries. White House
She says she supports and is inspired by young climate activists.
“These young leaders are guiding our nation in our climate fight. And as they have told me their work is driven by their hope and their determination. Hope, because they know we still have time to make a difference. And their determination is the determination to correct the course,” she said in 2023. White House
She’s been an opponent of fracking.
As a 2020 presidential candidate, “She also favored a ban on hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, which Mr. Biden said he opposed. Fracking is a technique that injects water and chemicals underground at high pressure to extract oil or gas that is otherwise difficult to access.” New York Times (gift link)
As California’s attorney general, “she investigated whether Exxon Mobil lied to the public and its shareholders about the risks to its business from climate change and whether such actions could amount to securities fraud and violations of environmental laws, but the case did not result in a prosecution.” New York Times (gift link)
“Harris secured an $86 million settlement from Volkswagen for rigging its vehicles with emissions-cheating software and investigated ExxonMobil over its climate change disclosures. She also filed a lawsuit against Phillips 66 and ConocoPhillips for environmental violations at gas stations, which eventually resulted in a $11.5 million settlement. And she conducted a criminal investigation of an oil company over a 2015 spill in Santa Barbara. The company was found guilty and convicted on nine criminal charges.” Grist
As San Francisco’s district attorney, “Harris created an environmental justice unit to address environmental crimes affecting San Francisco’s poorest residents and prosecuted several companies including U-Haul for violation of hazardous waste laws. Harris later touted her environmental justice unit as the first such unit in the country. An investigation found the unit only filed a handful of lawsuits, though, and none of them were against the city’s major industrial polluters.” Grist
Subject: Encouragement and Strategy for the Campaign
Dear Kamala,
First and foremost, congratulations on your nomination and the early days of your campaign. Your energy, resilience, and ability to break new ground (including that memorable Zoom moment and the “falling off a coconut tree” meme) have brought joy and laughter to the race. Keep that spirit alive!
I appreciate how you’ve reclaimed the word “freedom” from the political right. Now, let’s do the same with “Patriot.” For instance:
“It is time for American patriots to stand up and reclaim their country!”
Avoiding the Hillary trap is crucial. You’re everywhere, showing the world that you’re ready and committed—not just phoning it in or acting entitled. Well done!
Now, let’s discuss strategies for dealing with Trump:
Stand Up and STFU:
Force Trump to back down. Speak boldly: “Donald, do the country a favor—STFU, retire, and play golf with your buddies. Exit as a winner rather than lose again, especially to a Black woman.”
Mock Him:
Trump can’t handle being mocked. Keep it up 24/7. “There goes Grandpa, off his meds” whenever he says something ridiculous. “How do you know when Trump is lying? His lips are moving.”
Let Their Words Speak:
Highlight Trump’s own statements and those of his minions, including JD Vance.
Frame the choice: hate vs. hope, backward vs. forward, fascism vs. democracy.
Reminders for Voters:
Trump’s bankrupted casino and financial losses.
Abortion: Trump and Vance’s pro-birth fascism.
Immigration: Trump’s failure to address the crisis.
Concentration camps: Trump’s deportation plans.
Climate change: Their lack of a plan while the world burns.
Who Is Donald Trump?
A whiny, senile man past his prime.
JD Vance: a fake hillbilly and a creepy young man.
Let’s keep spreading the message: America deserves better!
Personal note: I grew up in Berkeley and attended Thousand Oaks elementary about nine years before you did. My father was active in Bay Area politics and was the President of both the Berkeley Co-Op and the Peralta Community College system and taught at Cal State SF and was the undersecretary of labor for Kennedy and Johnson.
I served 27 years in the U.S. Foreign Service with the State Department retiring in 2016.
First congratulations on your nomination and your early days of the campaign including breaking Zoom which is a new thing and for “the falling off a coconut tree” meme and bringing joy and laughter to the race.
And I love how you have done political jujutsu calling the race a race about freedom, taking the word back from the political right. Time to do the same with Patriot. For example
It is time for American patriots to stand back and take back their country!”
The last thing you are doing right is avoiding the Hilary trap. You are going everywhere and showing the world that you got this, you are energized and ready to go and are not just phoning it in or acting as if you are entitled.
Well done.
How to Beat Trump? Mock him 24/7
I wanted to give you some additional advice on how to beat Trump.
The key to dealing with him is the same thing that applies to bullies. First, stand up to him, force him to back up, and STFU. I would go full brat so to speak
,”Donald, do the country and the world a favor STFU retire already and play golf with your buddies. You can walk away a winner rather than lose again and lose to a black woman.”
Second, mock him 24/7. That is one thing he cannot do and it drives him bonkers.
Third, let his own words and those of his minions including JD speak for themselves. Put that out there 24/7
Frame it as a choice between the politics of hate and the politics of hope,
Frame it as a choice of going back, or bolding going forward
Make it a choice between fascism and democracy! shove the project 2025 and Agenda 47 end down their proverbial asses. Make them own their fascism.
Remind voters that once before America defeated fascism in World War 11. Who would have thought we would have to fight it at home?
For example, whenever he says something stupid or posts something stupid and say,” There goes Grandpa, off his meds”
Or you can say something like when he lies
“How do you know when Trump is lying? His lips are moving”
When he continues to lie about your record, simply say this
“Donald, regarding my law school background, I went to the best law school in the country, became attorney general of California and along the way took down mobsters, criminals, and perverts of all sorts. Where did you go? Oh, you barely graduated from the University of Pennsylvania? And your teachers said you were the dumbest student he ever had? Demand that he release his college transcripts, and SATS and post yours on line, as well as your SATS and LSATs”
Regarding the birtherism nonsense, release your birth certificates and tell Trump to just STFU about the birtherism nonsense it did not work before and it won’t work now.
Call him a loser all the time. Remind voters that he bankrupted a casino.
Remind people that the IRS said that he had lost more money than anyone in US history.
Re abortion, reminds voters that Trump and Vance are pro-birth fascists who want the state to be able to monitor women’s health status 24/7, preventing possibly pregnant people from traveling, and forcing 12-year-old girls to carry their rapist babies to term and or forcing pregnant women to sit outside the hospital bleeding to death before anyone will do anything to help them.
Re immigration reminds voters that we had a deal to deal with the immigration crisis and Trump and his minions pulled the deal preferring to let the immigration crisis fester.
Remind voters that he wants to deport 12 million people, putting them into concentration camps. Adding in you know that once he has the camps, other dissidents, LGBTQ people, women who dared to try to get an abortion, Muslims, and of course Jews – Jews always end up in the camps- will be rounded up and put in the camps.
Re climate change remind people that neither Trump nor the Republicans have a plan on what to do about climate change when the whole world is on fire all they want to do is defund the EPA, eliminate climate change policies, and Drill Baby, Drill Baby.
Who is Donald Trump? He is just a whiny old senile man way past his prime time and his running mate. JD Vance is a fake hillbilly who is just a creepy young man.
Tell the world over and over again this is Trump and Vance’s America.
Well, I could go on and on but you get the picture.
I still believe in her and in the basic goodness of the American people. I believe that the people will choose goodness over evil, love over hate, and progress over going back. When faced with the choice – a demented, deranged senile old man filled with hatred and revenge, or a competent accomplished woman they will make the right choice.
Congratulations, my Berkeley hometown girl. You got this girl.
Go Bold or go Home!
Berkeley Girl Makes It
The news
that Biden
was stepping down
throwing his support.
for Kamala Harris
as President.
filled me with joy
and anticipation.
Kamala Harris
attended my elementary school
Thousand Oaks in Berkeley
a few years before me.
and is a Berkeley girl
through and through.
Go Berkely !
Thousand Oak Girl I say.
T.O Toughie Girl Power.
the first Female VP
of Asian descent
the first VP
of black descent
the first Caribbean
to be on the ticket.
and the first Hindu
as well.
and the first
Berkeley native
on the ticket.
it is time
for Berkeley to rule
in my humble opinion.
Kamala
here’s what I would campaign on.
I retired from the U.S. State Department in 2016 after 27 years of service. I grew up in Berkeley (attended Thousand Oaks school a few years before you did, went to college at the University of the Pacific and graduated from the University of Washington (MA Korean Studies, MPA). I also served in the Peace Corps in Korea, and served 27 years in the Foreign Service serving in ten countries. I have been to all 50 States and 50 countries.
the theme would be getting stuff done for the people!
Reforming the Federal Budget
This is perhaps boring to voters but very important to the long-term stability of the country.
I would call upon Congress to change how they do budgets and shift to a two-year budgetary cycle. The first year of Congress would be devoted to passing the two-year budget, the second year would be devoted to oversight and supplemental budget requests.
Coupled that shifting to a calendar year budget. Eliminate the possibility of government shutdowns by enacting automatic CR’s if budgets are not passed on time. But also require budgets to be passed on time – December 1 in the prior year. If a budget is not passed on time, keep congress in town until the budget is passed. And if for some reason the budget is not passed, dinge congressional salaries until the budget is passed.
Second commission a study to look at our tax situation and make suggestions for common sense tax reform. Start by figuring out how much money the government spends in a given year, the reform of the tax code to generate most of the revenue from taxes. Consider a national sales tax as well. Reserve borrowing for large scale infrastructure, and military spending. And consider a surcharge on income of about 25 million per year.
I would also look at federal spending and ask that all departments identify lower priority projects with a required 5% reduction in federal spending per agency over a four-year period, except for health related and education related agencies which would be given a considerable bump up in spending. I would do this for three years so that in three years overall spending has been reduced by about 10 percent. Leave it up to the agencies to identify lower priority projects that should not be micromanaged by the White House.
For the defense department consider eliminating such things as golf courses, domestic PX and commissary stores and other non-essential spending.
Finally consider turning over some federal government functions to the states. The conservative idea of moving federal agencies out of Washington DC has considerable merit in my opinion.
My advice, in a nutshell, is to make this a campaign about the future and your vision of the future. Paint your opponent Donald Trump as yesterday’s candidate, and mock him, calling on Grandpa Trump to retire to Florida and play golf. Depict him as senile, out of touch, corrupt and focused on returning America to the 19th Century. And call for progressive bold new ideas for the future of America. Be optimistic, be full of hope and goodwill. Freely steal from Bernie and Elizabeth’s proposals and adopt her detailed plans – after talking with her of course. Call for reform not revolution and stress competence vs. incompetence and chaos.
Hillary’s biggest mistake was in my view making it all about how bad Donald Trump is, and not giving the voters a real sense of where she wanted to take the country. and making it seemed that she thought she was entitled, and it was her time. that is a big turnoff in politics.
She also took it for granted and did not compete everywhere. You have to out hustle Trump and go everywhere – hold virtual town halls everywhere until the Corona virus threat fades away.
You have to earn the trust of the voters and can’t be seen as thinking you are entitled to the presidency because you have done your dues so to speak. That is the kiss of electoral suicide – look at Mitch Romney and Hillary Clinton – both lost because they thought that it was their time and they were entitled to the presidency, the voters simply thought otherwise and showed them the door.
And in an age where the voters were ready for a big change to the status quo, being the establishment candidate was the kiss of death. Not to mention she refused to compete everywhere. And allowed Donald Trump to paint her as “crooked Hillary” and as too much part of the establishment which the public rightly destructed so much. She could have picked Bernie Sanders as her running mate, and perhaps defeated Donald Trump. In the end she won where it did not matter and did not compete where she should have competed.
So, in this upcoming election you have to tell the voters why you are so much better for them and the country than Donald Trump. It will not be enough to run against Donald. People have to want to vote for you. Your experience counts for a lot, but it is not enough.
How to Beat Trump
talk constantly about Donald Trump being the most corrupt president in US history and that he is guilty or gross nepotism. Call him Conman Don, for felon Con, or despicable me wanna be Don.
Finally, ignore his tweets. When he tweets something obnoxious dismiss it with the phrase “There he Goes Again”.
then talk about your bold yet pragmatic agenda over and over again. Remember the best way to handle a bully is to mock them over and over again. They can’t handle that and he will become more unhinged and dangerous as you mock him. So Mock him, girl. He deserves it. and in the debate call him on his BS brutally fact check his ass live on TV. Show the world what an ignorant senile old man he has become.
GO BOLD OR GO HOME
The times cries out for bold progressive challenges and for fresh thinking. Make people want to vote for you as they share your vision of the possible future. and want to have a positive, can-do message. Here are my suggested policy proposals.
I would put forth a series of comprehensive bold future-oriented policies and reiterate them every chance you get. You could call them Joe’s Plan for the Future of America, or Kamala’s Contract with the American People, something along those lines.
“Let’s Boldly Go into the Future,”
and rename your campaign as “Kamala for the American People” . Use one of your great assets your reputation for being an everyday person. But be big, bold, brassy, optimistic and challenge your opponents to produce a better plan or shut up and work with you to solve the nation’s problems.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent grads, they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service.
Call for The Green New Deal
Point out time and time again China, Germany, and other countries are building the green energy resources of the future while the U.S. which invented green energy is moving back to the 19th century.
When critics say we can’t afford this, tell them we can’t afford to ruin the world for our children’s future. We can’t afford to continue burning fossil fuels. Climate change is real, and the U.S. must lead the way forward. That is what great nations do, lead the world in embracing change, in embracing the promise of the future. We can do no less.
Call to Fix Obama Care
Point out time and time again that we still have a broken down too expensive too burdensome a health care system. Point out time and time again that we have the most expensive system in the world, yet we are about 25th in terms of health care outcomes. No one in this land should fear going bankrupt if they need to get medical care. We can do this right and we must do it right.
I would acknowledge that Obama Care is not perfect and that if you had a chance to re-do it you would make it much less bureaucratic and less burdensome. But be proud of what the Democrats accomplished. Promise to fix it and make it work.
One potential fix would be to open the Federal Health Care system to anyone who needs insurance and continue to provide subsidies to keep the premiums down.
Another option would be an expansion of Medicare, so it covers about half the country.
And enact permanent paid sick leave up to a month for all companies employing more than ten people.
When Republicans proclaim that they will repeal Obamacare and replace it with something, call them on their bullshit. Demand to know the plan now or tell them to shut up and work with you to fix Obamacare.
call for a slight reduction of military spending and national security spending to beef up health care spending and universal education access.
Call to repair our alliances
Declare that our allies are our allies and our friends, and we will work with them to solve the world’s problems and restore American leadership. We will rejoin the Paris Climate Change and work to make sure it works. We will rejoin the Transpacific Partnership. and we will figure out how to work with China and even Russia to solve problems of mutual interest such as climate change. Vow to restore partnership with Mexico and Canada and Latin America as well as India and Southeast Asia. and restore ties with Europe as well. Rebuild the UN and international organizations. And join the international criminal court. Finally close Gitmo as an affront to the American system of justice and human rights. Re Israel vow to work with Palestinians and Israelis alike to restart the peace process.
Offer a New Deal to North Korea
We will continue to negotiate with the North Koreans, offering them a way towards reunification with South Korea and rejoining the world economic community. You can damn the former President here with faint praise. Say that it was good that he took the initiative to break the log jam and talk to the North, but due to his inexperience and his naivety he was unable to make a deal as the North Koreans played him. You can finish the job.
Offer to Talk with The Iranians
Tell the Iranians we are ready to talk with them and want a new deal that would benefit them and the U.S. along the lines of what we are offering the North Koreans.
Bring the Troops Home
I would call for some U.S. troops to return to the U.S., where they will be reposted along our borders and serve as adjunct border patrol agents and first responders as part of their mandatory new national service.
Rebuild America
I would gradually reduce military spending and devote resources to rebuilding America’s crumbling infrastructure. This must include high-speed trains, and must include perhaps hyper-loop technology or Maglev trains? And the next generation of airplanes as well. We must rebuild our mass transit systems. We must embrace the development of driverless vehicles. and as mentioned we must beef up health care spending and assure universal access to higher education. These must be the new national priorities. I would throw the republicans a bone offers to look at modest reductions in other government spending for example decreasing spending on NPR but not eliminating it, and a slight decrease in foreign assistance, and UN contributions etc. and other government programs could be trimmed down a bit to pay for higher priorities.
Challenge the Republicans on their “you are weakening national security” BS. When the Republican scream you are weakening national security call them out on their BS.
Ask them how repositioning troops to help deal with national security issues at home weakens national security? How does going to universal military service weaken national security? How does getting out of endless wars weaken national security? How does closing a few bases in Europe weaken national security? Or closing a golf course? Or a commissary? Point out that we already spend more on national security than any other nation on earth. How does rebuilding America’s failed infrastructure weaken national security? How does providing medical care or universal higher education which benefits the entire nation hamper national security? Challenge them to produce a better plan.
Call for Comprehensive Immigration Reform
Start by acknowledging we need to improve security at the border, but the wall is a waste of time and money that will not solve the problem. We need a comprehensive 21st century immigration policy that balances the need for continued immigration with the need to ensure that immigrants contribute to our country and enrich our country as they always have and always will. Again throw the republicans a bone offers to ensure that E Verify is widely used by all employers and punish employers who hire illegals. I would also consider getting rid of the diversity visa program and the sibling immigration category but grandfather people in that category giving them two years to complete the immigration process with no new applicants being accepted. I would also push English language skills for immigrants as one of the new requirements – they must be able to handle the immigrant visa interview in English. That is something I agree with Trump on.
Challenge the Republicans to come up a better plan and work with you to implement it.
Call for A Return to Space Including Lunar Colonies and Martian Colonies
It is time for the U.S. to lead the world again in space exploration. Offer to lead the way in building lunar and Martian colonies with the participation of the world’s other space powers.
Call for The Legalization of Marijuana, Emptying the Prisons of Marijuana Offenders
End the endless war on drugs. Repeal marijuana prohibition. Empty the prisons of marijuana offenders. End the private prison for profit system. End the prison pipeline that sweeps up brown and black youths and sucks them into prison for life. Reserve prisons for the most dangerous offenders, all other prisoners should be sentenced to community service, drug treatment or other non-prison sentences. Use the money saved by closing prisons for rebuilding infrastructure.
Gun Control
I like your gun control proposals. It is a step forward. Continue to push for universal background checks.
Fully Support LGBT rights
Fully Support the religious freedom of all Americans including non-believers. Call to re-ignite Roe V Wade standards.
Call for a Return to traditional American civil norms that Trump has so badly damaged
call for reforming the Supreme Court. Including nominating the first hispanic member.
For VP Pick a centrist male governor.
I like the governor of Kentucky or North Carolina The governor of Michigan would be a good choice too. the Governor of California not so much.
To sum up, be cautious, small-minded, narrowly focused, and all about how bad Donald is, you will lose.
In any event, I believe that the time is now to call for national service in exchange for free college tuition/vocational training or grants to open small businesses. Three years of service followed by four years of either college/technical training, or assistance in opening a small business.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Dear Democratic Candidates:
I am writing to all of you and to President Trump to call for your to embrace national service in exchange for free college/technical training or assistance in opening a business.
It is time to change the game plan in Washington DC. You need a new bold proposal that will unite the country and heal the divisions. My proposal is for you to embrace mandatory national service for three years. Everyone finishing their service would receive full funding for college, technical training or a grant to set up their own business because after all not everyone needs to go to college, we need to encourage technical training and starting up small business as well.
the key is that the service would be universal and all citizens and LPR’s between the ages of 18 and 25 would serve three years – no exceptions. Most would be military, but people could serve as fine fathers. adjust police officers, adjust border patrol officers, adjust teachers, peace corps volunteers or serve in state/local and federal government positions.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent graduates , they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service. and point out that shifting to a mandatory national service requirement would save the Pentagon money on salaries. the cost would be modest – minimum wage, housing, medical care and college tuition after their service. People would serve between age 18 and 25 one year of training and two years of service, with an optional second enlistment for three more years of educational benefits through PHD/professional degrees. Starting at age 18 until age 25 people will be randomly selected to begin service. those who are 25 will have until they turn 26 to report for service. They would have one year to report for service.
Free College/Technical Training or Money to Open a Business in Exchange for National Service
Most people will start college, or tech training institute, then do military or other service, and then return to college to finish their college. That is fine. Ensure that colleges will not only accommodate that but will also offer college credits for military and other on -the-job training acquired during national service. This would also cut the cost of college attendance for most people to a manageable three years instead of four to five years. And of course, ensure that people can go to technical training institutes instead of a traditional college as we really ,need to grow the next generation of technical workers as well. and also ensure that those who wish financial assistance in setting up a small business would receive that assistance as well as we need to encourage the small business start-ups as well.
After Service can compete to become an NCO/Officer or work for the Federal/State/Local/tribal government/ UN or NGO
After finishing basic service, those who wish to make a career of it could compete to become an NCO or an officer and resume service after finishing college. And/or compete to enter government service for the Federal government or state and local government as well. The service academies will only accept those who have finished basic service. This would apply to new service academies being set up, see below for more details.
All Must Serve
And most importantly, shared national service will help restore America’s sense that this is our land, this land belongs to everyone. The rich and the poor alike. We are all in this together. We have lost sight of that. The military has become an army of paid mercenaries recruited from the lower classes. If everyone serves, there will be less temptation to send troops into harm’s way. This will be a win- win for everyone except for the student loan vultures.
I would bring most of the troops home and station them along the southern border where they could be used to help bolster border security, and assist as first responders to natural disaster. Sell this as real border security that will get the job done.
Establish New Service Academies for the Diplomatic, Intelligence Services/ Space Force/NASA, and law Enforcement
I would also call for four new national service academies to be set up. One would be for diplomatic and intelligence service, the other would be for law enforcement, the third would be for the Space Force/and NASA, the last would be more technical scientific agencies of the Federal government focusing on science and technology issues. These academies, like the military academies including a coast guard academy, and beefing up the maritime service academy, would take only those who finished their military basis service. this would be a great way to restore our diplomatic corps and intelligence services as well as our law enforcement person. All graduates can meet their service obligation (five years post graduation) through working for Federal/State/local/tribal governments, the UN or NGO’s. all the service academies as well as the Medical Medical schools, the foreign service training center (which will be transformed into the new diplomatic/intelligence training academy) would work together on the national service academies consortium to coordinate policies and training, including postgraduate training programs at the various military and other federal government training programs.
National Service Will Bring US together as one nation
I believe that this proposal could be enacted with widespread bipartisan support. It would go a long way to help heal the divisions of our country and bring us all together as a nation. I hope you will fully embrace this proposal and I look forward to discussing it with your staff.
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God here. Now that President Biden has heroically passed the torch to Kamala Harris, can we talk about the orange elephant in the room?
TRUMP MUST DROP OUT BECAUSE HE’S OLD AS FUCK.
Yeah, I said it. At 78-years-old, Donald is practically fossilized. You wouldn’t trust your grandpa to fix your Wi-Fi, so why let him run the country? He’s older than dirt and twice as clueless.
Like holy shit, did you see his speech at the RNC last week? The giant creep rambled on for 2 hours like he was Grandpa Simpson.
Look, the presidency is a tough gig. It needs someone with energy, someone who can stay awake past 7 PM without nodding off. Trump?
HE FALLS ASLEEP IN THE COURT.
He fell asleep during his own convention. He’s got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel. The only marathon he’s running is a nap marathon.
And let’s talk about the gaffes—Donald says some stupid insane shit that doesn’t make sense every single time he speaks. The only people it makes sense to are also totally delusional Christian Nationalist freaks like Marjorie Taylore Greene.
And don’t get me started on the health issues. Remember that mysterious trip to Walter Reed? Make America great again? This man can’t handle a ramp. The only thing he can make great again is the act of face planting into the ground.
So, here’s the divine decree: Trump, pack it up. Go home, put on your slippers, and watch Matlock reruns. Leave running the country to someone who can remember what day it is without checking Fox News. It’s time for you to drop out, you crusty old bag of assholes.
Now that I, the LORD THY GOD, have brought attention to this issue, I am sure the media will be obsessing about it every day from here on out.
Before we start: I did a YouTube thing about Biden last night, if you’re interested.
Now let’s go.
(1) The Democratic party is a healthy institution.
On the night of June 27, the various power centers within the Democratic party began a difficult conversation: Was Joe Biden still capable of running a vigorous campaign?
Over three weeks the party reached a diffuse—if not unanimous—consensus: He was not. This consensus was the product of all levels of the party: Elder statesmen such as Nancy Pelosi, elected Democrats analyzing their own future prospects, donors making decisions about spending, and the main body of public opinion among Democratic voters.
Once this consensus was reached, the various power centers began a dialogue with the party’s leader, President Biden. The party expressed its choice. Biden pushed back. The party took up the question again and, after due consideration, held firm.
Joe Biden then stepped aside for the good of the nation.
This is how healthy institutions are supposed to work.
At The Bulwark there has been a lot of drama over the last three weeks. We told you what we really thought, even though it meant making some people mad.
Our mission is to have honest and real conversations. Because that’s what healthy institutions do.
Right here, in the Bulwark community, those conversations were great. I mean, they were often painful. But they were always civil and conducted in good faith.
How special is this community? We had one member who was so disappointed in us that he cancelled his subscription and then came back to the comments every day to try to convince others to cancel their subscriptions, too. And he did it passionately, but with respect.
Where do you find people like that on the internet? It was amazing.
The coming weeks are going to be full of history. Come and ride through it with us.
J The process which elevated Kamala Harris was sensible.
The Democratic party made another institutional decision in parallel with the Biden question: It vetted Kamala Harris.
This subroutine executed in the background, but it was active. Democratic voters began to consider her as the nominee and polling showed that they were comfortable with her. Party elders evaluated her fitness. Donors and elected Democrats took her measure. The fact that no anti-Harris groundswell—or even boom let—emerged is proof that the party decided that Harris was an acceptable nominee.
After Biden blessed Harris on Sunday afternoon, the party coalesced around her in much the way it did Biden after the New Hampshire primary in 2020.
The Democratic party will enter the election more unified than it had been pre-debate.
3. Kamala Harris can run as an insurgent, but with the advantages of an incumbent.
The largest advantage of incumbency is that a candidate does not have to take base-pleasing positions during a primary campaign that can hurt him during a general election.
Because of the extraordinary nature of her ascendence, Harris possesses this advantage. She will carry nearly every advantage of incumbency and yet she can credibly position herself as this election’s change agent.
4. Trump is holding the age bomb.
The Trump campaign spent two years creating a political bomb concerning old age. They assumed that they could plant this bomb at the feet of Joe Biden.
Trump is now the one holding the age bomb. He is not only a full generation older than Harris—everything about him looks geriatric by comparison. From his gait to his bronzed-over pallor; from the way he rambles and gets lost in sentences to his inability to keep facts straight.
Every split screen now makes Trump look old and decrepit by comparison.
5. There was enormous pent-up demand among Democrats for a younger leader.
That’s more money than any Democrat has ever raised in a single day. It’s twice as much as Trump raised following his felony conviction. If this doesn’t snap your head back, it should.
Because it’s as good a proxy as you’ll find for excitement.
It will be several days until we have polling with a more detailed view of Harris’s support from Democratic voters, but it is already clear that she will perform much better than Biden has within her party.
Here’s my advice: You should be open to the idea that Harris could ride a wave of excitement and passion that absolutely no one was seeing until Biden stepped aside. I’m talking Obama ‘08-levels of energy.
It’s not a given. But it’s in the realm of the possible. Keep your eyes peeled for it.
6. The Republican party is a failed state.
At the debate, Donald Trump also demonstrated (again) that he is unfit for office. He rambled and lied incoherently. He is a convicted felon. A jury found him guilty of sexual assault. He has said he wants to be a “dictator” and that he wants to “terminate” parts of the Constitution. He selected as his running mate a man who advised disobeying orders from the Supreme Court and forcing a constitutional crisis.
Until last week there was nothing stopping the Republican party from forcing Trump off the ticket. The party elders and elected officials could have demanded that Trump step aside. Republican voters could have said that they had no confidence in his ability to govern. Donors could have closed their wallets.
But the plain fact is that not one single Republican called on Trump to step aside.
Not one.
Why? Because the various precincts of the Republican party understand that they hold no power—at all—over Trump. They could not ask him to withdraw from the race. Even broaching the subject would be grounds for excommunication from the party.
The Democratic party is a functioning institution, with checks and balances, constituencies and power structures. Like any institution, it is amorphous and its decision making is mostly organic.
The Republican party is an autocracy where the only thing that matters is the will of the leader. All power flows through him. All decisions are made by him. There are no competing power centers—only vassal states overseen by his noblemen.
7. Harris is an underdog.
One of the reasons the last three weeks have been so difficult is because Democrats were not choosing between a “good” outcome and a “bad” outcome.
Those sorts of choices are easy.
Instead, Democrats were tasked with deciding between least-bad options. Humans rebel against the idea of “least-bad.” When faced with choices, we want to believe that at least one of them is “good.”
When the first real Harris-vs.-Trump polling comes out next week we’ll see how big of a hole she’s in. But unlike Biden, Harris has the ability to spend the next three months on offense, all day, every day. If she can deliver the goods, she has a puncher’s chance.
2. In Praise of Biden
A slight push-back against those who believe Biden took too long to step aside:
It was three and a half weeks from the debate to Biden pulling out. That’s it.
Joe Biden is the president, but he’s also just a man. Coming to a decision like this one—an unprecedented decision—is hard. There’s a lot to weigh and there’s a tremendous responsibility to get it right.
My own view is that Biden made the call basically as quickly as possible. He couldn’t have done it the week of the NATO summit. Then Trump was shot in the ear. Then there was the Republican convention. To my mind, Biden’s timing on this was optimal, actually.
Nothing about Joe Biden’s presidency was inevitable. Not his candidacy. Not his victory over Trump. Not his withdrawal from reelection.
At nearly every turn, Biden did the right thing for America.
His legacy is assured. He will be remembered as one of the great modern presidents.
I said this last night and I’ll say it again. History had its eye on Joe Biden, and he met the moment. He did his part. Now it’s up to Kamala Harris and us to do ours.
In the coming weeks we will find out if the people who said, “I hate Trump, but Biden is too old” really meant it.
Will they find some new excuse for why they have to vote for Trump? Will they become unconcerned about the risks of old age and cognitive decline in a president?
I’m not talking about partisan public personalities on Twitter. I’m talking about swing voters: The kind of Trump-to-Biden voters who have been backsliding in Trump’s direction.
Sarah’s focus groups are going to be absolutely vital for understanding how this group thinks. Don’t miss them.
for about an hour after Biden’s announcement, I ran around with my hair on fire. I’d just spent a month warning everyone about the chaos that Biden dropping out would bring — infighting, battles over fundraising, lawsuits, atonal music, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together — mass hysteria.
and then a thing happened that I absolutely did not see coming: just about the entire Democratic establishment immediately threw their support behind Kamala Harris.
Mr. Biden endorsed Ms. Harris within minutes on Sunday afternoon. Before she had uttered a word about her intentions, he was swiftly followed by other party leaders, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, key Democratic senators and influential House members. By the evening, Mr. Shapiro had publicly backed Ms. Harris after a phone call from her. She also picked up endorsements from Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, Mr. Cooper and Mr. Kelly.
A coalition of former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley voters pledged their support for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid on Sunday, hours after President Joe Biden announced that he was dropping out of the race.
Joe Biden remains a master at doing politics. Dark Brandon dark-Brandon the shit out of his passing of the torch. clearly, this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision. Joe had to have worked behind the scenes to shore up this much immediate support for Kamala. he made sure not one word of any this leaked. he timed the announcement of his decision so that Donny and the Republicans spent the entire convention running against the wrong candidate. and the pièce de résistance —
Sending out a press release on Sunday afternoon, after the morning talk shows, totally screwed the media. No video clips, no “breaking news,” no chance for pundits to comment on how he sounded, looked, walked, etc. No chance to schedule guests to pick him apart as he spoke. He totally starved them of clicks and eyeballs, in repayment for them starving his candidacy of positive coverage purely for the sake of clicks and eyeballs.
look, I didn’t want any of this to happen. Biden was my guy, and I was prepared to back Joe all the way to November and beyond. but, that said, I have to admit that last night I slept better than I have any time in the last month.
now let’s turn our attention to all the people who need to fuck all the way off.
Stelter spent a month screaming that JOE MUST GO — but now that he’s gotten what he wanted, he’s moved the goalposts to JOE MUST GO BUT NOT LIKE THIS. some people are just never happy.
“some” is doing a fuck-ton of heavy lifting here. are these “some” black voters in the room with us right now?
note to Times nepo-publisher Arthur Gregg Sulzberger: it doesn’t matter how hard you suck up to Donny, he’s not going to make the Times his official state media if he takes power. stop trying.
in fact, all the nitwits still rooting for their own personal fantasy ticket can fuck off.
how many times does Michelle Obama need to state that she has no interest in running for office? you’re wasting everyone’s time with this mental masturbation. do it in private.
we all knew that the Republicans were immediately going to pivot to “now Joe Biden must resign” — but these clowns are not thinking this through. first of all, Joe quitting is a big bowl of never gonna happen. second, does the GOP really want to spend the next three months running against President Kamala Harris?
now this is awesome: the Republican Party just realized that they’re no longer running against icky old Joe Biden who smells bad and is too demented to realize that he died six months ago. they created this whole fiction about Joe Biden and now they can’t use any of it — and they’re freaking the fuck out.
“they held a primary! people, they had ballots! they filled out circles! they went to the voting booths! they spent money on advertisements! and as president Trump, said the Republican Party spent tens of millions of dollars running against Joe Biden! now they just woke up one morning and said never mind, we’re canceling the entire primary, we’re getting rid of our candidate and pretending the election just never even happened and let donors hand-pick a new nominee?”
it’s not fair! how dare the Democrats come together around a young and vibrant candidate, leaving our guy to be the old fart in the race.
boo fucking hoo, you grievance-babies. you demanded this happen, and now you’re whining about it. shut the fuck up and dry your eyes. here’s your binky.
as Stephen Miller noted in his crybaby rant, Donny Convict is hopping mad. he’s demanding to speak to Sleepy Brandon’s manager because he wants his money back.
So, we are forced to spend time and money on fighting Crooked Joe Biden, he polls badly after having a terrible debate, and quits the race. Now we have to start all over again. Shouldn’t the Republican Party be reimbursed for fraud in that everybody around Joe, including his doctors and the Fake News Media, knew he was not capable of running for, or being, President? Just askin’?
it’s the prosecutor versus the felon. I’ll take that.
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My thoughts on the Harris Candidacy.
I still believe in her and in the basic goodness of the American people. I believe that the people will choose goodness over evil, love over hate and progress over going back.
when faced with the choice – a demented, deranged senile old man filled with hatred and revenge, or a competent accomplished woman they will make the right choice.
Congratulations, my Berkeley hometown girl. You got this girl.
Go Bold or go Home!
Berkeley Girl Makes It
The news
that Biden
was stepping down
throwing his support.
for Kamala Harris
as President.
filled me with joy
and anticipation.
Kamala Harris
attended my elementary school
Thousand Oaks in Berkeley
a few years before me.
and is a Berkeley girl
through and through.
Go Berkely !
Thousand Oak Girl I say.
T.O Toughie Girl Power.
the first Female VP
of Asian descent
the first VP
of black descent
the first Caribbean
to be on the ticket.
and the first Hindu
as well.
and the first
Berkeley native
on the ticket.
it is time
for Berkeley to rule
in my humble opinion.
Kamala
here’s what I would campaign on.
the theme would be getting stuff done for the people!
Reforming the Federal Budget
This is perhaps boring to voters but very important to the long-term stability of the country.
I would call upon Congress to change how they do budgets and shift to a two-year budgetary cycle. The first year of Congress would be devoted to passing the two-year budget, the second year would be devoted to oversight and supplemental budget requests.
Coupled that shifting to a calendar year budget. Eliminate the possibility of government shutdowns by enacting automatic CR’s if budgets are not passed on time. But also require budgets to be passed on time – December 1 in the prior year. If a budget is not passed on time, keep congress in town until the budget is passed. And if for some reason the budget is not passed, dinge congressional salaries until the budget is passed.
Second commission a study to look at our tax situation and make suggestions for common sense tax reform. Start by figuring out how much money the government spends in a given year, the reform of the tax code to generate most of the revenue from taxes. Consider a national sales tax as well. Reserve borrowing for large scale infrastructure, and military spending. And consider a surcharge on income of about 25 million per year.
I would also look at federal spending and ask that all departments identify lower priority projects with a required 5% reduction in federal spending per agency over a four year period, except for health related and education related agencies which would be given a considerable bump up in spending. I would do this for three years so that in three years overall spending has been reduced by about 10 percent. Leave it up to the agencies to identify lower priority projects that should not be micromanaged by the White House.
For the defense department consider eliminating such things as golf courses, domestic PX and commissary stores and other non-essential spending.
Finally consider turning over some federal government functions to the states. The conservative idea of moving federal agencies out of Washington DC has considerable merit in my opinion.
The rest of my earlier suggestions follow with a few updates
I retired from the U.S. State Department in 2016 after 27 years of service. I grew up in Berkeley went to college at the University of the Pacific and graduated from the University of Washington (MA Korean Studies, MPA). I also served in the Peace Corps in Korea. I have been to 49 out of 50 states (minus Alaska) and 45 countries.
My advice, in a nutshell, is to make this a campaign about the future and your vision of the future. Paint your opponent Donald Trump as yesterday’s candidate, and mock him, calling on Grandpa Trump to retire to Florida and play golf. Depict him as senile, out of touch, corrupt and focused on returning America to the 19th Century. And call for progressive bold new ideas for the future of America. Be optimistic, be full of hope and goodwill. Freely steal from Bernie and Elizabeth’s proposals and adopt her detailed plans – after talking with her of course. Call for reform not revolution and stress competence vs. incompetence and chaos.
Hillary’s biggest mistake was in my view making it all about how bad Donald Trump is, and not giving the voters a real sense of where she wanted to take the country. and making it seemed that she thought she was entitled, and it was her time. that is a big turnoff in politics.
She also took it for granted and did not compete everywhere. You have to out hustle Trump and go everywhere – hold virtual town halls everywhere until the Corona virus threat fades away.
You have to earn the trust of the voters and can’t be seen as thinking you are entitled to the presidency because you have done your dues so to speak. That is the kiss of electoral suicide – look at Mitch Romney and Hillary Clinton – both lost because they thought that it was their time and they were entitled to the presidency, the voters simply thought otherwise and showed them the door.
And in an age where the voters were ready for a big change to the status quo, being the establishment candidate was the kiss of death. Not to mention she refused to compete everywhere. And allowed Donald Trump to paint her as “crooked Hillary” and as too much part of the establishment which the public rightly destructed so much. She could have picked Bernie Sanders as her running mate, and perhaps defeated Donald Trump. In the end she won where it did not matter and did not compete where she should have competed.
So, in this upcoming election you have to tell the voters why you are so much better for them and the country than Donald Trump. It will not be enough to run against Donald. People have to want to vote for you. Your experience counts for a lot, but it is not enough.
How to Beat Trump
talk constantly about Donald Trump being the most corrupt president in US history and that he is guilty or gross nepotism.
Finally, ignore his tweets. When he tweets something obnoxious dismiss it with the phrase “There he Goes Again”.
then talk about your bold yet pragmatic agenda over and over again.
GO BOLD OR GO HOME
The times cries out for bold progressive challenges and for fresh thinking. Make people want to vote for you as they share your vision of the possible future. and want to have a positive, can do message. Here are my suggested policy proposals.
I would put forth a series of comprehensive bold future-oriented policies and reiterate them every chance you get. You could call them Joe’s Plan for the Future of America, or Kamala’s Contract with the American People, something along those lines.
“Let’s Boldly Go into the Future,”
and rename your campaign as “Kamala for the American People” . Use one of your great assets your reputation for being an everyday person. But be big, bold, brassy, optimistic and challenge your opponents to produce a better plan or shut up and work with you to solve the nation’s problems.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent grads, they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service.
Call for The Green New Deal
Point out time and time again China, Germany, and other countries are building the green energy resources of the future while the U.S. which invented green energy is moving back to the 19th century.
When critics say we can’t afford this, tell them we can’t afford to ruin the world for our children’s future. We can’t afford to continue burning fossil fuels. Climate change is real, and the U.S. must lead the way forward. That is what great nations do, lead the world in embracing change, in embracing the promise of the future. We can do no less.
Call to Fix Obama Care
Point out time and time again that we still have a broken down too expensive too burdensome a health care system. Point out time and time again that we have the most expensive system in the world, yet we are about 25th in terms of health care outcomes. No one in this land should fear going bankrupt if they need to get medical care. We can do this right and we must do it right.
I would acknowledge that Obama Care is not perfect and that if you had a chance to re-do it you would make it much less bureaucratic and less burdensome. But be proud of what the Democrats accomplished. Promise to fix it and make it work.
One potential fix would be to open the Federal Health Care system to anyone who needs insurance and continue to provide subsidies to keep the premiums down.
Another option would be an expansion of Medicare, so it covers about half the country.
And enact permanent paid sick leave up to a month for all companies employing more than ten people.
When Republicans proclaim that they will repeal Obamacare and replace it with something, call them on their bullshit. Demand to know the plan now or tell them to shut up and work with you to fix Obamacare.
call for a slight reduction of military spending and national security spending to beef up health care spending and universal education access.
Call to repair our alliances
Declare that our allies are our allies and our friends, and we will work with them to solve the world’s problems and restore American leadership. We will rejoin the Paris Climate Change and work to make sure it works. We will rejoin the Transpacific Partnership. and we will figure out how to work with China and even Russia to solve problems of mutual interest such as climate change. Vow to restore partnership with Mexico and Canada and Latin America as well as India and Southeast Asia. and restore ties with Europe as well. Rebuild the UN and international organizations. And join the international criminal court. Finally close Gitmo as an affront to the American system of justice and human rights. Re Israel vow to work with Palestinians and Israelis alike to restart the peace process.
Offer a New Deal to North Korea
We will continue to negotiate with the North Koreans, offering them a way towards reunification with South Korea and rejoining the world economic community. You can damn the former President here with faint praise. Say that it was good that he took the initiative to break the log jam and talk to the North, but due to his inexperience and his naivety he was unable to make a deal as the North Koreans played him. You can finish the job.
Offer to Talk with The Iranians
Tell the Iranians we are ready to talk with them and want a new deal that would benefit them and the U.S. along the lines of what we are offering the North Koreans.
Bring the Troops Home
I would call for some U.S. troops to return to the U.S., where they will be reposted along our borders and serve as adjunct border patrol agents and first responders as part of their mandatory new national service.
Rebuild America
I would gradually reduce military spending and devote resources to rebuilding America’s crumbling infrastructure. This must include high-speed trains, and must include perhaps hyper-loop technology or Maglev trains? And the next generation of airplanes as well. We must rebuild our mass transit systems. We must embrace the development of driverless vehicles. and as mention we must beef up health care spending and assure universal access to higher education. These must be the new national priorities. I would throw the republicans a bone offers to look at modest reductions in other government spending for example decreasing spending on NPR but not eliminating it, and a slight decrease in foreign assistance, and UN contributions etc. and other government programs could be trimmed down a bit to pay for higher priorities.
Challenge the Republicans on their “you are weakening national security” BS. When the Republican scream you are weakening national security call them out on their BS.
Ask them how repositioning troops to help deal with national security issues at home weakens national security? How does going to universal military service weaken national security? How does getting out of endless wars weaken national security? How does closing a few bases in Europe weaken national security? Or closing a golf course? Or a commissary? Point out that we already spend more on national security than any other nation on earth. How does rebuilding America’s failed infrastructure weaken national security? How does providing medical care or universal higher education which benefits the entire nation hamper national security? Challenge them to produce a better plan.
Call for Comprehensive Immigration Reform
Start by acknowledging we need to improve security at the border, but the wall is a waste of time and money that will not solve the problem. We need a comprehensive 21st century immigration policy that balances the need for continued immigration with the need to ensure that immigrants contribute to our country and enrich our country as they always have and always will. Again throw the republicans a bone offers to ensure that E Verify is widely used by all employers and punish employers who hire illegals. I would also consider getting rid of the diversity visa program and the sibling immigration category but grandfather people in that category giving them two years to complete the immigration process with no new applicants being accepted. I would also push English language skills for immigrants as one of the new requirements – they must be able to handle the immigrant visa interview in English. That is something I agree with Trump on.
Challenge the Republicans to come up a better plan and work with you to implement it.
Call for A Return to Space Including Lunar Colonies and Martian Colonies
It is time for the U.S. to lead the world again in space exploration. Offer to lead the way in building lunar and Martian colonies with the participation of the world’s other space powers.
Call for The Legalization of Marijuana, Emptying the Prisons of Marijuana Offenders
End the endless war on drugs. Repeal marijuana prohibition. Empty the prisons of marijuana offenders. End the private prison for profit system. End the prison pipeline that sweeps up brown and black youths and sucks them into prison for life. Reserve prisons for the most dangerous offenders, all other prisoners should be sentenced to community service, drug treatment or other non-prison sentences. Use the money saved by closing prisons for rebuilding infrastructure.
Gun Control
I like your gun control proposals. It is a step forward. Continue to push for universal background checks.
Fully Support LGBT rights
Fully Support the religious freedom of all Americans including non-believers
Call for a Return to traditional American civil norms that Trump has so badly damaged
For VP Pick a centrist male governor.
I like the governor of Kentucky or North Carolina The governor of Michigan would be a good choice too. the Governor of California not so much.
To sum up, be cautious, small-minded, narrowly focused, and all about how bad Donald is, you will lose.
In any event, I believe that the time is now to call for national service in exchange for free college tuition/vocational training or grants to open small businesses. Three years of service followed by four years of either college/technical training, or assistance in opening a small business.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Dear Democratic Candidates:
I am writing to all of you and to President Trump to call for your to embrace national service in exchange for free college/technical training or assistance in opening a business.
It is time to change the game plan in Washington DC. You need a new bold proposal that will unite the country and heal the divisions. My proposal is for you to embrace mandatory national service for three years. Everyone finishing their service would receive full funding for college, technical training or a grant to set up their own business because after all not everyone needs to go to college, we need to encourage technical training and starting up small business as well.
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the key is that the service would be universal and all citizens and LPR’s between the ages of 18 and 25 would serve three years – no exceptions. Most would be military, but people could serve as fine fathers. adjust police officers, adjust border patrol officers, adjust teachers, peace corps volunteers or serve in state/local and federal government positions.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent graduates , they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service. and point out that shifting to a mandatory national service requirement would save the Pentagon money on salaries. the cost would be modest – minimum wage, housing, medical care and college tuition after their service. People would serve between age 18 and 25 one year of training and two years of service, with an optional second enlistment for three more years of educational benefits through PHD/professional degrees. Starting at age 18 until age 25 people will be randomly selected to begin service. those who are 25 will have until they turn 26 to report for service. They would have one year to report for service.
Free College/technical training or money to open a business in exchange for national service
Most people will start college, or tech training institute, then do military or other service, and then return to college to finish their college. That is fine. Ensure that colleges will not only accommodate that but will also offer college credits for military and other on the job training acquired during national service. This would also cut the cost of college attendance for most people to a manageable three years instead of four to five years. And of course, ensure that people can go to technical training institutes instead of a traditional college as we really need to grow the next generation of technical workers as well. and also ensure that those who wish financial assistance in setting up a small business would receive that assistance as well as we need to encourage the small business start ups as well.
After Service can compete to become an NCO/Officer or work for the Federal/State/Local/tribal government/ UN or NGO
After finishing basis service, those who wish to make a career of it could compete to become an NCO or an officer, and resume service after finishing college. And/or compete to enter government service for the Federal government or state and local government as well. and the service academies will only accept those who have finished basic service. This would apply to new service academies being set up, see below for more details.
All Must Serve
And most importantly, shared national service will help restore America’s sense that this is our land, this land belongs to everyone. The rich and the poor alike. We are all in this together. We have lost sight of that. The military has become an army of paid mercenaries recruited from the lower classes. If everyone serves, there will be less temptation to send troops into harms way. This will be a win- win for everyone except for the student loan vultures.
I would bring most of the troops home and station them along the southern border where they could be used to help bolster border security, and assist as first responders to natural disaster. Sell this as a real border security that will get the job done.
Establish New Service Academies for the Diplomatic, Intelligence Services/ Space Force/NASA, and law Enforcement
I would also call for four new national service academies to be set up. One would be for diplomatic and intelligence service, the other would be for law enforcement, the third would be for the Space Force/and NASA, the last would be more technical scientific agencies of the Federal government focusing on science and technology issues. These academies like the military academies including a coast guard academy, and beefing up the maritime service academy, would take only those who finished their military basis service. this would be a great way to restore our diplomatic corps and intelligence services as well as our law enforcement person. All graduates can meet their service obligation (five years post graduation) through working for Federal/State/local/tribal governments, the UN or NGO’s. all the service academies as well as the Medical Medical schools, the foreign service training center (which will be transformed into the new diplomatic/intelligence training academy) would work together on the national service academies consortium to coordinate policies and training, including post graduate training programs at the various military and other federal government training programs.
National Service Will Bring US together as one nation
I believe that this proposal could be enacted with widespread bipartisan support. It would go a long way to help heal the divisions of our country and bring us all together as a nation. I hope you will fully embrace this proposal and I look forward to discussing it with yours staff.
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Yeah, I said it. At 78-years-old, Donald is practically fossilized. You wouldn’t trust your grandpa to fix your Wi-Fi, so why let him run the country? He’s older than dirt and twice as clueless.
Like holy shit, did you see his speech at the RNC last week? The giant creep rambled on for 2 hours like he was Grandpa Simpson.
Look, the presidency is a tough gig. It needs someone with energy, someone who can stay awake past 7 PM without nodding off. Trump?
HE FALLS ASLEEP IN COURT.
He fell asleep during his own convention. He’s got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel. The only marathon he’s running is a nap marathon.
And let’s talk about the gaffes—Donald says some stupid insane shit that doesn’t make sense every single time he speaks. The only people it makes sense to are also totally delusional Christian Nationalist freaks like Marjorie Taylore Greene.
And don’t get me started on the health issues. Remember that mysterious trip to Walter Reed? Make America great again? This man can’t handle a ramp. The only thing he can make great again is the act of faceplanting into the ground.
So, here’s the divine decree: Trump, pack it up. Go home, put on your slippers, and watch Matlock reruns. Leave running the country to someone who can remember what day it is without checking Fox News. It’s time for you to drop out, you crusty old bag of assholes.
Now that I, the LORD THY GOD, have brought attention to this issue, I am sure the media will be obsessing about it every day from here on out.
Before we start: I did a YouTube thing about Biden last night, if you’re interested.
Now let’s go.
(1) The Democratic party is a healthy institution.
On the night of June 27, the various power centers within the Democratic party began a difficult conversation: Was Joe Biden still capable of running a vigorous campaign?
Over three weeks the party reached a diffuse—if not unanimous—consensus: He was not. This consensus was the product of all levels of the party: Elder statesmen such as Nancy Pelosi, elected Democrats analyzing their own future prospects, donors making decisions about spending, and the main body of public opinion among Democratic voters.
Once this consensus was reached, the various power centers began a dialogue with the party’s leader, President Biden. The party expressed its choice. Biden pushed back. The party took up the question again and, after due consideration, held firm.
Joe Biden then stepped aside for the good of the nation.
This is how healthy institutions are supposed to work.
At The Bulwark there has been a lot of drama over the last three weeks. We told you what we really thought, even though it meant making some people mad.
Our mission is to have honest and real conversations. Because that’s what healthy institutions do.
Right here, in the Bulwark community, those conversations were great. I mean, they were often painful. But they were always civil and conducted in good faith.
How special is this community? We had one member who was so disappointed in us that he cancelled his subscription and then came back to the comments every day to try to convince others to cancel their subscriptions, too. And he did it passionately, but with respect.
Where do you find people like that on the internet? It was amazing.
The coming weeks are going to be full of history. Come and ride through it with us.
2. The process which elevated Kamala Harris was sensible.
The Democratic party made another institutional decision in parallel with the Biden question: It vetted Kamala Harris.
This subroutine executed in the background, but it was active. Democratic voters began to consider her as the nominee and polling showed that they were comfortable with her. Party elders evaluated her fitness. Donors and elected Democrats took her measure. The fact that no anti-Harris groundswell—or even boom let—emerged is proof that the party decided that Harris was an acceptable nominee.
After Biden blessed Harris on Sunday afternoon, the party coalesced around her in much the way it did Biden after the New Hampshire primary in 2020.
The Democratic party will enter the election more unified than it had been pre-debate.
3. Kamala Harris can run as an insurgent, but with the advantages of an incumbent.
The largest advantage of incumbency is that a candidate does not have to take base-pleasing positions during a primary campaign that can hurt him during a general election.
Because of the extraordinary nature of her ascendence, Harris possesses this advantage. She will carry nearly every advantage of incumbency and yet she can credibly position herself as this election’s change agent.
4. Trump is holding the age bomb.
The Trump campaign spent two years creating a political bomb concerning old age. They assumed that they could plant this bomb at the feet of Joe Biden.
Trump is now the one holding the age bomb. He is not only a full generation older than Harris—everything about him looks geriatric by comparison. From his gait to his bronzed-over pallor; from the way he rambles and gets lost in sentences to his inability to keep facts straight.
Every split screen now makes Trump look old and decrepit by comparison.
That’s more money than any Democrat has ever raised in a single day. It’s twice as much as Trump raised following his felony conviction. If this doesn’t snap your head back, it should.
Because it’s as good a proxy as you’ll find for excitement.
It will be several days until we have polling with a more detailed view of Harris’s support from Democratic voters, but it is already clear that she will perform much better than Biden has within her party.
Here’s my advice: You should be open to the idea that Harris could ride a wave of excitement and passion that absolutely no one was seeing until Biden stepped aside. I’m talking Obama ‘08-levels of energy.
It’s not a given. But it’s in the realm of the possible. Keep your eyes peeled for it.
At the debate, Donald Trump also demonstrated (again) that he is unfit for office. He rambled and lied incoherently. He is a convicted felon. A jury found him guilty of sexual assault. He has said he wants to be a “dictator” and that he wants to “terminate” parts of the Constitution. He selected as his running mate a man who advised disobeying orders from the Supreme Court and forcing a constitutional crisis.
Until last week there was nothing stopping the Republican party from forcing Trump off the ticket. The party elders and elected officials could have demanded that Trump step aside. Republican voters could have said that they had no confidence in his ability to govern. Donors could have closed their wallets.
But the plain fact is that not one single Republican called on Trump to step aside.
Not one.
Why? Because the various precincts of the Republican party understand that they hold no power—at all—over Trump. They could not ask him to withdraw from the race. Even broaching the subject would be grounds for excommunication from the party.
The Democratic party is a functioning institution, with checks and balances; constituencies and power structures. Like any institution, it is amorphous and its decision making is mostly organic.
The Republican party is an autocracy where the only thing that matters is the will of the leader. All power flows through him. All decisions are made by him. There are no competing power centers—only vassal states overseen by his noblemen.
One of the reasons the last three weeks have been so difficult is because Democrats were not choosing between a “good” outcome and a “bad” outcome.
Those sorts of choices are easy.
Instead, Democrats were tasked with deciding between least-bad options. Humans rebel against the idea of “least-bad.” When faced with choices, we want to believe that at least one of them is “good.”
When the first real Harris-vs.-Trump polling comes out next week we’ll see how big of a hole she’s in. But unlike Biden, Harris has the ability to spend the next three months on offense, all day, every day. If she can deliver the goods, she has a puncher’s chance.
A slight push-back against those who believe Biden took too long to step aside:
It was three and a half weeks from the debate to Biden pulling out. That’s it.
Joe Biden is the president, but he’s also just a man. Coming to a decision like this one—an unprecedented decision—is hard. There’s a lot to weigh and there’s a tremendous responsibility to get it right.
My own view is that Biden made the call basically as quickly as possible. He couldn’t have done it the week of the NATO summit. Then Trump was shot in the ear. Then there was the Republican convention. To my mind, Biden’s timing on this was optimal, actually.
Nothing about Joe Biden’s presidency was inevitable. Not his candidacy. Not his victory over Trump. Not his withdrawal from reelection.
At nearly every turn, Biden did the right thing for America.
His legacy is assured. He will be remembered as one of the great modern presidents.
I said this last night and I’ll say it again. History had its eye on Joe Biden, and he met the moment. He did his part. Now it’s up to Kamala Harris and us to do ours.
In the coming weeks we will find out if the people who said, “I hate Trump, but Biden is too old” really meant it.
Will they find some new excuse for why they have to vote for Trump? Will they become unconcerned about the risks of old age and cognitive decline in a president?
I’m not talking about partisan public personalities on Twitter. I’m talking about swing voters: The kind of Trump-to-Biden voters who have been backsliding in Trump’s direction.
Sarah’s focus groups are going to be absolutely vital for understanding how this group thinks. Don’t miss them.
for about an hour after Biden’s announcement, I ran around with my hair on fire. I’d just spent a month warning everyone about the chaos that Biden dropping out would bring — infighting, battles over fundraising, lawsuits, atonal music, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together — mass hysteria.
and then a thing happened that I absolutely did not see coming: just about the entire Democratic establishment immediately threw their support behind Kamala Harris.
Mr. Biden endorsed Ms. Harris within minutes on Sunday afternoon. Before she had uttered a word about her intentions, he was swiftly followed by other party leaders, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, key Democratic senators and influential House members. By the evening, Mr. Shapiro had publicly backed Ms. Harris after a phone call from her. She also picked up endorsements from Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, Mr. Cooper and Mr. Kelly.
A coalition of former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley voters pledged their support for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid on Sunday, hours after President Joe Biden announced that he was dropping out of the race.
Joe Biden remains a master at doing politics. Dark Brandon dark-Brandon the shit out of his passing of the torch. clearly, this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision. Joe had to have worked behind the scenes to shore up this much immediate support for Kamala. he made sure not one word of any this leaked. he timed the announcement of his decision so that Donny and the Republicans spent the entire convention running against the wrong candidate. and the pièce de résistance —
Sending out a press release on Sunday afternoon, after the morning talk shows, totally screwed the media. No video clips, no “breaking news,” no chance for pundits to comment on how he sounded, looked, walked, etc. No chance to schedule guests to pick him apart as he spoke. He totally starved them of clicks and eyeballs, in repayment for them starving his candidacy of positive coverage purely for the sake of clicks and eyeballs.
look, I didn’t want any of this to happen. Biden was my guy, and I was prepared to back Joe all the way to November and beyond. but, that said, I have to admit that last night I slept better than I have any time in the last month.
now let’s turn our attention to all the people who need to fuck all the way off.
Stelter spent a month screaming that JOE MUST GO — but now that he’s gotten what he wanted, he’s moved the goalposts to JOE MUST GO BUT NOT LIKE THIS. some people are just never happy.
“some” is doing a fuck-ton of heavy lifting here. are these “some” black voters in the room with us right now?
note to Times nepo-publisher Arthur Gregg Sulzberger: it doesn’t matter how hard you suck up to Donny, he’s not going to make the Times his official state media if he takes power. stop trying.
in fact, all the nitwits still rooting for their own personal fantasy ticket can fuck off.
how many times does Michelle Obama need to state that she has no interest in running for office? you’re wasting everyone’s time with this mental masturbation. do it in private.
we all knew that the Republicans were immediately going to pivot to “now Joe Biden must resign” — but these clowns are not thinking this through. first of all, Joe quitting is a big bowl of never gonna happen. second, does the GOP really want to spend the next three months running against President Kamala Harris?
now this is awesome: the Republican Party just realized that they’re no longer running against icky old Joe Biden who smells bad and is too demented to realize that he died six months ago. they created this whole fiction about Joe Biden and now they can’t use any of it — and they’re freaking the fuck out.
“they held a primary! people, they had ballots! they filled out circles! they went to the voting booths! they spent money on advertisements! and as president Trump, said the Republican Party spent tens of millions of dollars running against Joe Biden! now they just woke up one morning and said never mind, we’re canceling the entire primary, we’re getting rid of our candidate and pretending the election just never even happened and let donors hand-pick a new nominee?”
it’s not fair! how dare the Democrats come together around a young and vibrant candidate, leaving our guy to be the old fart in the race.
boo fucking hoo, you grievance-babies. you demanded this happen, and now you’re whining about it. shut the fuck up and dry your eyes. here’s your binky.
as Stephen Miller noted in his crybaby rant, Donny Convict is hopping mad. he’s demanding to speak to Sleepy Brandon’s manager because he wants his money back.
So, we are forced to spend time and money on fighting Crooked Joe Biden, he polls badly after having a terrible debate, and quits the race. Now we have to start all over again. Shouldn’t the Republican Party be reimbursed for fraud in that everybody around Joe, including his doctors and the Fake News Media, knew he was not capable of running for, or being, President? Just askin’?
it’s the prosecutor versus the felon. I’ll take that.
…Substack
JAKECOSMOSALLER.SUBSTACK.COM
My Thoughts On the Harris For President
My Thoughts on the Harris Candidacy. https://wp.me/p7NAzO-2Zb Health Care Reforms For Joe and Kamala Joe, Go Bold or Go Home – revisedThanks for reading jake’s Newsletter! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. Joe, Either Go Bold or Retire!
I still believe in her and in the basic goodness of the American people. I believe that the people will choose goodness over evil, love over hate and progress over going back. When faced with the choice – a demented, deranged senile old man filled with hatred and revenge, or a competent accomplished woman they will make the right choice.
Congratulations, my Berkeley hometown girl. You got this girl.
Go Bold or go Home!
Berkeley Girl Makes It
The news
that Biden
was stepping down
throwing his support.
for Kamala Harris
as President.
filled me with joy
and anticipation.
Kamala Harris
attended my elementary school
Thousand Oaks in Berkeley
a few years before me.
and is a Berkeley girl
through and through.
Go Berkely !
Thousand Oak Girl I say.
T.O Toughie Girl Power.
the first Female VP
of Asian descent
the first VP
of black descent
the first Caribbean
to be on the ticket.
and the first Hindu
as well.
and the first
Berkeley native
on the ticket.
it is time
for Berkeley to rule
in my humble opinion.
Kamala
here’s what I would campaign on.
I retired from the U.S. State Department in 2016 after 27 years of service. I grew up in Berkeley (attended Thousand Oaks school a few years before you did, went to college at the University of the Pacific. and graduated from the University of Washington (MA in Korean Studies, MPA). I also served in the Peace Corps in Korea and served 27 years in the Foreign Service in ten countries. I have been to all 50 States and 50 countries.
the theme would be getting stuff done for the people!
Reforming the Federal Budget
This is perhaps boring to voters but very important to the long-term stability of the country.
I would call upon Congress to change how they do budgets and shift to a two-year budgetary cycle. The first year of Congress would be devoted to passing the two-year budget, the second year would be devoted to oversight and supplemental budget requests.
Coupled that shifting to a calendar year budget. Eliminate the possibility of government shutdowns by enacting automatic CR’s if budgets are not passed on time. But also require budgets to be passed on time – December 1 in the prior year. If a budget is not passed on time, keep congress in town until the budget is passed. And if for some reason the budget is not passed, dinge congressional salaries until the budget is passed.
Second commission a study to look at our tax situation and make suggestions for common sense tax reform. Start by figuring out how much money the government spends in a given year, the reform of the tax code to generate most of the revenue from taxes. Consider a national sales tax as well. Reserve borrowing for large scale infrastructure, and military spending. And consider a surcharge on income of about 25 million per year.
I would also look at federal spending and ask that all departments identify lower priority projects with a required 5% reduction in federal spending per agency over a four-year period, except for health related and education related agencies which would be given a considerable bump up in spending. I would do this for three years so that in three years overall spending has been reduced by about 10 percent. Leave it up to the agencies to identify lower priority projects that should not be micromanaged by the White House.
For the defense department consider eliminating such things as golf courses, domestic PX and commissary stores and other non-essential spending.
Finally consider turning over some federal government functions to the states. The conservative idea of moving federal agencies out of Washington DC has considerable merit in my opinion.
My advice, in a nutshell, is to make this a campaign about the future and your vision of the future. Paint your opponent Donald Trump as yesterday’s candidate, and mock him, calling on Grandpa Trump to retire to Florida and play golf. Depict him as senile, out of touch, corrupt and focused on returning America to the 19th Century. And call for progressive bold new ideas for the future of America. Be optimistic, be full of hope and goodwill. Freely steal from Bernie and Elizabeth’s proposals and adopt her detailed plans – after talking with her of course. Call for reform not revolution and stress competence vs. incompetence and chaos.
Hillary’s biggest mistake was in my view making it all about how bad Donald Trump is, and not giving the voters a real sense of where she wanted to take the country. and making it seemed that she thought she was entitled, and it was her time. that is a big turnoff in politics.
She also took it for granted and did not compete everywhere. You have to out hustle Trump and go everywhere – hold virtual town halls everywhere until the Corona virus threat fades away.
You have to earn the trust of the voters and can’t be seen as thinking you are entitled to the presidency because you have done your dues so to speak. That is the kiss of electoral suicide – look at Mitch Romney and Hillary Clinton – both lost because they thought that it was their time and they were entitled to the presidency, the voters simply thought otherwise and showed them the door.
And in an age where the voters were ready for a big change to the status quo, being the establishment candidate was the kiss of death. Not to mention she refused to compete everywhere. And allowed Donald Trump to paint her as “crooked Hillary” and as too much part of the establishment which the public rightly destructed so much. She could have picked Bernie Sanders as her running mate, and perhaps defeated Donald Trump. In the end she won where it did not matter and did not compete where she should have competed.
So, in this upcoming election you have to tell the voters why you are so much better for them and the country than Donald Trump. It will not be enough to run against Donald. People have to want to vote for you. Your experience counts for a lot, but it is not enough.
How to Beat Trump
talk constantly about Donald Trump being the most corrupt president in US history and that he is guilty or gross nepotism. Call him Conman Don, for felon Con, or despicable me wanna be Don.
Finally, ignore his tweets. When he tweets something obnoxious dismiss it with the phrase “There he Goes Again”.
then talk about your bold yet pragmatic agenda over and over again. Remember the best way to handle a bully is to mock them over and over again. They can’t handle that and he will become more unhinged and dangerous as you mock him. So Mock him, girl. He deserves it. and in the debate call him on his BS brutally fact check his ass live on TV. Show the world what an ignorant senile old man he has become.
GO BOLD OR GO HOME
The times cries out for bold progressive challenges and for fresh thinking. Make people want to vote for you as they share your vision of the possible future. and want to have a positive, can-do message. Here are my suggested policy proposals.
I would put forth a series of comprehensive bold future-oriented policies and reiterate them every chance you get. You could call them Joe’s Plan for the Future of America, or Kamala’s Contract with the American People, something along those lines.
“Let’s Boldly Go into the Future,”
and rename your campaign as “Kamala for the American People” . Use one of your great assets your reputation for being an everyday person. But be big, bold, brassy, optimistic and challenge your opponents to produce a better plan or shut up and work with you to solve the nation’s problems.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent grads, they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service.
Call for The Green New Deal
Point out time and time again China, Germany, and other countries are building the green energy resources of the future while the U.S. which invented green energy is moving back to the 19th century.
When critics say we can’t afford this, tell them we can’t afford to ruin the world for our children’s future. We can’t afford to continue burning fossil fuels. Climate change is real, and the U.S. must lead the way forward. That is what great nations do, lead the world in embracing change, in embracing the promise of the future. We can do no less.
Call to Fix Obama Care
Point out time and time again that we still have a broken down too expensive too burdensome a health care system. Point out time and time again that we have the most expensive system in the world, yet we are about 25th in terms of health care outcomes. No one in this land should fear going bankrupt if they need to get medical care. We can do this right and we must do it right.
I would acknowledge that Obama Care is not perfect and that if you had a chance to re-do it you would make it much less bureaucratic and less burdensome. But be proud of what the Democrats accomplished. Promise to fix it and make it work.
One potential fix would be to open the Federal Health Care system to anyone who needs insurance and continue to provide subsidies to keep the premiums down.
Another option would be an expansion of Medicare, so it covers about half the country.
And enact permanent paid sick leave up to a month for all companies employing more than ten people.
When Republicans proclaim that they will repeal Obamacare and replace it with something, call them on their bullshit. Demand to know the plan now or tell them to shut up and work with you to fix Obamacare.
call for a slight reduction of military spending and national security spending to beef up health care spending and universal education access.
Call to repair our alliances
Declare that our allies are our allies and our friends, and we will work with them to solve the world’s problems and restore American leadership. We will rejoin the Paris Climate Change and work to make sure it works. We will rejoin the Transpacific Partnership. and we will figure out how to work with China and even Russia to solve problems of mutual interest such as climate change. Vow to restore partnership with Mexico and Canada and Latin America as well as India and Southeast Asia. and restore ties with Europe as well. Rebuild the UN and international organizations. And join the international criminal court. Finally close Gitmo as an affront to the American system of justice and human rights. Re Israel vow to work with Palestinians and Israelis alike to restart the peace process.
Offer a New Deal to North Korea
We will continue to negotiate with the North Koreans, offering them a way towards reunification with South Korea and rejoining the world economic community. You can damn the former President here with faint praise. Say that it was good that he took the initiative to break the log jam and talk to the North, but due to his inexperience and his naivety he was unable to make a deal as the North Koreans played him. You can finish the job.
Offer to Talk with The Iranians
Tell the Iranians we are ready to talk with them and want a new deal that would benefit them and the U.S. along the lines of what we are offering the North Koreans.
Bring the Troops Home
I would call for some U.S. troops to return to the U.S., where they will be reposted along our borders and serve as adjunct border patrol agents and first responders as part of their mandatory new national service.
Rebuild America
I would gradually reduce military spending and devote resources to rebuilding America’s crumbling infrastructure. This must include high-speed trains, and must include perhaps hyper-loop technology or Maglev trains? And the next generation of airplanes as well. We must rebuild our mass transit systems. We must embrace the development of driverless vehicles. and as mentioned we must beef up health care spending and assure universal access to higher education. These must be the new national priorities. I would throw the republicans a bone offers to look at modest reductions in other government spending for example decreasing spending on NPR but not eliminating it, and a slight decrease in foreign assistance, and UN contributions etc. and other government programs could be trimmed down a bit to pay for higher priorities.
Challenge the Republicans on their “you are weakening national security” BS. When the Republican scream you are weakening national security call them out on their BS.
Ask them how repositioning troops to help deal with national security issues at home weakens national security? How does going to universal military service weaken national security? How does getting out of endless wars weaken national security? How does closing a few bases in Europe weaken national security? Or closing a golf course? Or a commissary? Point out that we already spend more on national security than any other nation on earth. How does rebuilding America’s failed infrastructure weaken national security? How does providing medical care or universal higher education which benefits the entire nation hamper national security? Challenge them to produce a better plan.
Call for Comprehensive Immigration Reform
Start by acknowledging we need to improve security at the border, but the wall is a waste of time and money that will not solve the problem. We need a comprehensive 21st century immigration policy that balances the need for continued immigration with the need to ensure that immigrants contribute to our country and enrich our country as they always have and always will. Again throw the republicans a bone offers to ensure that E Verify is widely used by all employers and punish employers who hire illegals. I would also consider getting rid of the diversity visa program and the sibling immigration category but grandfather people in that category giving them two years to complete the immigration process with no new applicants being accepted. I would also push English language skills for immigrants as one of the new requirements – they must be able to handle the immigrant visa interview in English. That is something I agree with Trump on.
Challenge the Republicans to come up a better plan and work with you to implement it.
Call for A Return to Space Including Lunar Colonies and Martian Colonies
It is time for the U.S. to lead the world again in space exploration. Offer to lead the way in building lunar and Martian colonies with the participation of the world’s other space powers.
Call for The Legalization of Marijuana, Emptying the Prisons of Marijuana Offenders
End the endless war on drugs. Repeal marijuana prohibition. Empty the prisons of marijuana offenders. End the private prison for profit system. End the prison pipeline that sweeps up brown and black youths and sucks them into prison for life. Reserve prisons for the most dangerous offenders, all other prisoners should be sentenced to community service, drug treatment or other non-prison sentences. Use the money saved by closing prisons for rebuilding infrastructure.
Gun Control
I like your gun control proposals. It is a step forward. Continue to push for universal background checks.
Fully Support LGBT rights
Fully Support the religious freedom of all Americans including non-believers. Call to re-ignite Roe V Wade standards.
Call for a Return to traditional American civil norms that Trump has so badly damaged
call for reforming the Supreme Court. Including nominating the first hispanic member.
For VP Pick a centrist male governor.
I like the governor of Kentucky or North Carolina The governor of Michigan would be a good choice too. the Governor of California not so much.
To sum up, be cautious, small-minded, narrowly focused, and all about how bad Donald is, you will lose.
In any event, I believe that the time is now to call for national service in exchange for free college tuition/vocational training or grants to open small businesses. Three years of service followed by four years of either college/technical training, or assistance in opening a small business.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Dear Democratic Candidates:
I am writing to all of you and to President Trump to call for your to embrace national service in exchange for free college/technical training or assistance in opening a business.
It is time to change the game plan in Washington DC. You need a new bold proposal that will unite the country and heal the divisions. My proposal is for you to embrace mandatory national service for three years. Everyone finishing their service would receive full funding for college, technical training or a grant to set up their own business because after all not everyone needs to go to college, we need to encourage technical training and starting up small business as well.
the key is that the service would be universal and all citizens and LPR’s between the ages of 18 and 25 would serve three years – no exceptions. Most would be military, but people could serve as fine fathers. adjust police officers, adjust border patrol officers, adjust teachers, peace corps volunteers or serve in state/local and federal government positions.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent graduates , they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service. and point out that shifting to a mandatory national service requirement would save the Pentagon money on salaries. the cost would be modest – minimum wage, housing, medical care and college tuition after their service. People would serve between age 18 and 25 one year of training and two years of service, with an optional second enlistment for three more years of educational benefits through PHD/professional degrees. Starting at age 18 until age 25 people will be randomly selected to begin service. those who are 25 will have until they turn 26 to report for service. They would have one year to report for service.
Free College/Technical Training or Money to Open a Business in Exchange for National Service
Most people will start college, or tech training institute, then do military or other service, and then return to college to finish their college. That is fine. Ensure that colleges will not only accommodate that but will also offer college credits for military and other on -the-job training acquired during national service. This would also cut the cost of college attendance for most people to a manageable three years instead of four to five years. And of course, ensure that people can go to technical training institutes instead of a traditional college as we really need to grow the next generation of technical workers as well. and also ensure that those who wish financial assistance in setting up a small business would receive that assistance as well as we need to encourage the small business start-ups as well.
After Service can compete to become an NCO/Officer or work for the Federal/State/Local/tribal government/ UN or NGO
After finishing basic service, those who wish to make a career of it could compete to become an NCO or an officer and resume service after finishing college. And/or compete to enter government service for the Federal government or state and local government as well. The service academies will only accept those who have finished basic service. This would apply to new service academies being set up, see below for more details.
All Must Serve
And most importantly, shared national service will help restore America’s sense that this is our land, this land belongs to everyone. The rich and the poor alike. We are all in this together. We have lost sight of that. The military has become an army of paid mercenaries recruited from the lower classes. If everyone serves, there will be less temptation to send troops into harm’s way. This will be a win- win for everyone except for the student loan vultures.
I would bring most of the troops home and station them along the southern border where they could be used to help bolster border security and assist as first responders to natural disaster. Sell this as real border security that will get the job done.
Establish New Service Academies for the Diplomatic, Intelligence Services/ Space Force/NASA, and law Enforcement
I would also call for four new national service academies to be set up. One would be for diplomatic and intelligence service, the other would be for law enforcement, the third would be for the Space Force/and NASA, the last would be more technical scientific agencies of the Federal government focusing on science and technology issues. These academies, like the military academies including a coast guard academy, and beefing up the maritime service academy, would take only those who finished their military basis service. this would be a great way to restore our diplomatic corps and intelligence services as well as our law enforcement person. All graduates can meet their service obligation (five years post graduation) through working for Federal/State/local/tribal governments, the UN or NGO’s. all the service academies as well as the Medical Medical schools, the foreign service training center (which will be transformed into the new diplomatic/intelligence training academy) would work together on the national service academies consortium to coordinate policies and training, including postgraduate training programs at the various military and other federal government training programs.
National Service Will Bring US together as one nation
I believe that this proposal could be enacted with widespread bipartisan support. It would go a long way to help heal the divisions of our country and bring us all together as a nation. I hope you will fully embrace this proposal and I look forward to discussing it with your staff.
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God here. Now that President Biden has heroically passed the torch to Kamala Harris, can we talk about the orange elephant in the room?
TRUMP MUST DROP OUT BECAUSE HE’S OLD AS FUCK.
Yeah, I said it. At 78-years-old, Donald is practically fossilized. You wouldn’t trust your grandpa to fix your Wi-Fi, so why let him run the country? He’s older than dirt and twice as clueless.
Like holy shit, did you see his speech at the RNC last week? The giant creep rambled on for 2 hours like he was Grandpa Simpson.
Look, the presidency is a tough gig. It needs someone with energy, someone who can stay awake past 7 PM without nodding off. Trump?
HE FALLS ASLEEP IN THE COURT.
He fell asleep during his own convention. He’s got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel. The only marathon he’s running is a nap marathon.
And let’s talk about the gaffes—Donald says some stupid insane shit that doesn’t make sense every single time he speaks. The only people it makes sense to are also totally delusional Christian Nationalist freaks like Marjorie Taylore Greene.
And don’t get me started on the health issues. Remember that mysterious trip to Walter Reed? Make America great again? This man can’t handle a ramp. The only thing he can make great again is the act of face planting into the ground.
So, here’s the divine decree: Trump, pack it up. Go home, put on your slippers, and watch Matlock reruns. Leave running the country to someone who can remember what day it is without checking Fox News. It’s time for you to drop out, you crusty old bag of assholes.
Now that I, the LORD THY GOD, have brought attention to this issue, I am sure the media will be obsessing about it every day from here on out.
Before we start: I did a YouTube thing about Biden last night, if you’re interested.
Now let’s go.
(1) The Democratic party is a healthy institution.
On the night of June 27, the various power centers within the Democratic party began a difficult conversation: Was Joe Biden still capable of running a vigorous campaign?
Over three weeks the party reached a diffuse—if not unanimous—consensus: He was not. This consensus was the product of all levels of the party: Elder statesmen such as Nancy Pelosi, elected Democrats analyzing their own future prospects, donors making decisions about spending, and the main body of public opinion among Democratic voters.
Once this consensus was reached, the various power centers began a dialogue with the party’s leader, President Biden. The party expressed its choice. Biden pushed back. The party took up the question again and, after due consideration, held firm.
Joe Biden then stepped aside for the good of the nation.
This is how healthy institutions are supposed to work.
At The Bulwark there has been a lot of drama over the last three weeks. We told you what we really thought, even though it meant making some people mad.
Our mission is to have honest and real conversations. Because that’s what healthy institutions do.
Right here, in the Bulwark community, those conversations were great. I mean, they were often painful. But they were always civil and conducted in good faith.
How special is this community? We had one member who was so disappointed in us that he cancelled his subscription and then came back to the comments every day to try to convince others to cancel their subscriptions, too. And he did it passionately, but with respect.
Where do you find people like that on the internet? It was amazing.
The coming weeks are going to be full of history. Come and ride through it with us.
J The process which elevated Kamala Harris was sensible.
The Democratic party made another institutional decision in parallel with the Biden question: It vetted Kamala Harris.
This subroutine executed in the background, but it was active. Democratic voters began to consider her as the nominee and polling showed that they were comfortable with her. Party elders evaluated her fitness. Donors and elected Democrats took her measure. The fact that no anti-Harris groundswell—or even boom let—emerged is proof that the party decided that Harris was an acceptable nominee.
After Biden blessed Harris on Sunday afternoon, the party coalesced around her in much the way it did Biden after the New Hampshire primary in 2020.
The Democratic party will enter the election more unified than it had been pre-debate.
3. Kamala Harris can run as an insurgent, but with the advantages of an incumbent.
The largest advantage of incumbency is that a candidate does not have to take base-pleasing positions during a primary campaign that can hurt him during a general election.
Because of the extraordinary nature of her ascendence, Harris possesses this advantage. She will carry nearly every advantage of incumbency and yet she can credibly position herself as this election’s change agent.
4. Trump is holding the age bomb.
The Trump campaign spent two years creating a political bomb concerning old age. They assumed that they could plant this bomb at the feet of Joe Biden.
Trump is now the one holding the age bomb. He is not only a full generation older than Harris—everything about him looks geriatric by comparison. From his gait to his bronzed-over pallor; from the way he rambles and gets lost in sentences to his inability to keep facts straight.
Every split screen now makes Trump look old and decrepit by comparison.
5. There was enormous pent-up demand among Democrats for a younger leader.
That’s more money than any Democrat has ever raised in a single day. It’s twice as much as Trump raised following his felony conviction. If this doesn’t snap your head back, it should.
Because it’s as good a proxy as you’ll find for excitement.
It will be several days until we have polling with a more detailed view of Harris’s support from Democratic voters, but it is already clear that she will perform much better than Biden has within her party.
Here’s my advice: You should be open to the idea that Harris could ride a wave of excitement and passion that absolutely no one was seeing until Biden stepped aside. I’m talking Obama ‘08-levels of energy.
It’s not a given. But it’s in the realm of the possible. Keep your eyes peeled for it.
6. The Republican party is a failed state.
At the debate, Donald Trump also demonstrated (again) that he is unfit for office. He rambled and lied incoherently. He is a convicted felon. A jury found him guilty of sexual assault. He has said he wants to be a “dictator” and that he wants to “terminate” parts of the Constitution. He selected as his running mate a man who advised disobeying orders from the Supreme Court and forcing a constitutional crisis.
Until last week there was nothing stopping the Republican party from forcing Trump off the ticket. The party elders and elected officials could have demanded that Trump step aside. Republican voters could have said that they had no confidence in his ability to govern. Donors could have closed their wallets.
But the plain fact is that not one single Republican called on Trump to step aside.
Not one.
Why? Because the various precincts of the Republican party understand that they hold no power—at all—over Trump. They could not ask him to withdraw from the race. Even broaching the subject would be grounds for excommunication from the party.
The Democratic party is a functioning institution, with checks and balances, constituencies and power structures. Like any institution, it is amorphous and its decision making is mostly organic.
The Republican party is an autocracy where the only thing that matters is the will of the leader. All power flows through him. All decisions are made by him. There are no competing power centers—only vassal states overseen by his noblemen.
7. Harris is an underdog.
One of the reasons the last three weeks have been so difficult is because Democrats were not choosing between a “good” outcome and a “bad” outcome.
Those sorts of choices are easy.
Instead, Democrats were tasked with deciding between least-bad options. Humans rebel against the idea of “least-bad.” When faced with choices, we want to believe that at least one of them is “good.”
When the first real Harris-vs.-Trump polling comes out next week we’ll see how big of a hole she’s in. But unlike Biden, Harris has the ability to spend the next three months on offense, all day, every day. If she can deliver the goods, she has a puncher’s chance.
2. In Praise of Biden
A slight push-back against those who believe Biden took too long to step aside:
It was three and a half weeks from the debate to Biden pulling out. That’s it.
Joe Biden is the president, but he’s also just a man. Coming to a decision like this one—an unprecedented decision—is hard. There’s a lot to weigh and there’s a tremendous responsibility to get it right.
My own view is that Biden made the call basically as quickly as possible. He couldn’t have done it the week of the NATO summit. Then Trump was shot in the ear. Then there was the Republican convention. To my mind, Biden’s timing on this was optimal, actually.
Nothing about Joe Biden’s presidency was inevitable. Not his candidacy. Not his victory over Trump. Not his withdrawal from reelection.
At nearly every turn, Biden did the right thing for America.
His legacy is assured. He will be remembered as one of the great modern presidents.
I said this last night and I’ll say it again. History had its eye on Joe Biden, and he met the moment. He did his part. Now it’s up to Kamala Harris and us to do ours.
In the coming weeks we will find out if the people who said, “I hate Trump, but Biden is too old” really meant it.
Will they find some new excuse for why they have to vote for Trump? Will they become unconcerned about the risks of old age and cognitive decline in a president?
I’m not talking about partisan public personalities on Twitter. I’m talking about swing voters: The kind of Trump-to-Biden voters who have been backsliding in Trump’s direction.
Sarah’s focus groups are going to be absolutely vital for understanding how this group thinks. Don’t miss them.
for about an hour after Biden’s announcement, I ran around with my hair on fire. I’d just spent a month warning everyone about the chaos that Biden dropping out would bring — infighting, battles over fundraising, lawsuits, atonal music, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together — mass hysteria.
and then a thing happened that I absolutely did not see coming: just about the entire Democratic establishment immediately threw their support behind Kamala Harris.
Mr. Biden endorsed Ms. Harris within minutes on Sunday afternoon. Before she had uttered a word about her intentions, he was swiftly followed by other party leaders, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, key Democratic senators and influential House members. By the evening, Mr. Shapiro had publicly backed Ms. Harris after a phone call from her. She also picked up endorsements from Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, Mr. Cooper and Mr. Kelly.
A coalition of former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley voters pledged their support for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid on Sunday, hours after President Joe Biden announced that he was dropping out of the race.
Joe Biden remains a master at doing politics. Dark Brandon dark-Brandon the shit out of his passing of the torch. clearly, this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision. Joe had to have worked behind the scenes to shore up this much immediate support for Kamala. he made sure not one word of any this leaked. he timed the announcement of his decision so that Donny and the Republicans spent the entire convention running against the wrong candidate. and the pièce de résistance —
Sending out a press release on Sunday afternoon, after the morning talk shows, totally screwed the media. No video clips, no “breaking news,” no chance for pundits to comment on how he sounded, looked, walked, etc. No chance to schedule guests to pick him apart as he spoke. He totally starved them of clicks and eyeballs, in repayment for them starving his candidacy of positive coverage purely for the sake of clicks and eyeballs.
look, I didn’t want any of this to happen. Biden was my guy, and I was prepared to back Joe all the way to November and beyond. but, that said, I have to admit that last night I slept better than I have any time in the last month.
now let’s turn our attention to all the people who need to fuck all the way off.
Stelter spent a month screaming that JOE MUST GO — but now that he’s gotten what he wanted, he’s moved the goalposts to JOE MUST GO BUT NOT LIKE THIS. some people are just never happy.
“some” is doing a fuck-ton of heavy lifting here. are these “some” black voters in the room with us right now?
note to Times nepo-publisher Arthur Gregg Sulzberger: it doesn’t matter how hard you suck up to Donny, he’s not going to make the Times his official state media if he takes power. stop trying.
in fact, all the nitwits still rooting for their own personal fantasy ticket can fuck off.
how many times does Michelle Obama need to state that she has no interest in running for office? you’re wasting everyone’s time with this mental masturbation. do it in private.
we all knew that the Republicans were immediately going to pivot to “now Joe Biden must resign” — but these clowns are not thinking this through. first of all, Joe quitting is a big bowl of never gonna happen. second, does the GOP really want to spend the next three months running against President Kamala Harris?
now this is awesome: the Republican Party just realized that they’re no longer running against icky old Joe Biden who smells bad and is too demented to realize that he died six months ago. they created this whole fiction about Joe Biden and now they can’t use any of it — and they’re freaking the fuck out.
“they held a primary! people, they had ballots! they filled out circles! they went to the voting booths! they spent money on advertisements! and as President Trump, said the Republican Party spent tens of millions of dollars running against Joe Biden! now they just woke up one morning and said never mind, we’re canceling the entire primary, we’re getting rid of our candidate and pretending the election just never even happened and let donors hand-pick a new nominee?”
it’s not fair! how dare the Democrats come together around a young and vibrant candidate, leaving our guy to be the old fart in the race.
boo fucking hoo, you grievance-babies. you demanded this happen, and now you’re whining about it. shut the fuck up and dry your eyes. here’s your binky.
as Stephen Miller noted in his crybaby rant, Donny Convict is hopping mad. he’s demanding to speak to Sleepy Brandon’s manager because he wants his money back.
So, we are forced to spend time and money on fighting Crooked Joe Biden, he polls badly after having a terrible debate, and quits the race. Now we have to start all over again. Shouldn’t the Republican Party be reimbursed for fraud in that everybody around Joe, including his doctors and the Fake News Media, knew he was not capable of running for, or being, President? Just askin’?
it’s the prosecutor versus the felon. I’ll take that.
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My thoughts on the Harris Candidacy.
I still believe in her and in the basic goodness of the American people. I believe that the people will choose goodness over evil, love over hate and progress over going back.
when faced with the choice – a demented, deranged senile old man filled with hatred and revenge, or a competent accomplished woman they will make the right choice.
Congratulations, my Berkeley hometown girl. You got this girl.
Go Bold or go Home!
Berkeley Girl Makes It
The news
that Biden
was stepping down
throwing his support.
for Kamala Harris
as President.
filled me with joy
and anticipation.
Kamala Harris
attended my elementary school
Thousand Oaks in Berkeley
a few years before me.
and is a Berkeley girl
through and through.
Go Berkely !
Thousand Oak Girl I say.
T.O Toughie Girl Power.
the first Female VP
of Asian descent
the first VP
of black descent
the first Caribbean
to be on the ticket.
and the first Hindu
as well.
and the first
Berkeley native
on the ticket.
it is time
for Berkeley to rule
in my humble opinion.
Kamala
here’s what I would campaign on.
the theme would be getting stuff done for the people!
Reforming the Federal Budget
This is perhaps boring to voters but very important to the long-term stability of the country.
I would call upon Congress to change how they do budgets and shift to a two-year budgetary cycle. The first year of Congress would be devoted to passing the two-year budget, the second year would be devoted to oversight and supplemental budget requests.
Coupled that shifting to a calendar year budget. Eliminate the possibility of government shutdowns by enacting automatic CR’s if budgets are not passed on time. But also require budgets to be passed on time – December 1 in the prior year. If a budget is not passed on time, keep congress in town until the budget is passed. And if for some reason the budget is not passed, dinge congressional salaries until the budget is passed.
Second commission a study to look at our tax situation and make suggestions for common sense tax reform. Start by figuring out how much money the government spends in a given year, the reform of the tax code to generate most of the revenue from taxes. Consider a national sales tax as well. Reserve borrowing for large scale infrastructure, and military spending. And consider a surcharge on income of about 25 million per year.
I would also look at federal spending and ask that all departments identify lower priority projects with a required 5% reduction in federal spending per agency over a four-year period, except for health related and education related agencies which would be given a considerable bump up in spending. I would do this for three years so that in three years overall spending has been reduced by about 10 percent. Leave it up to the agencies to identify lower priority projects that should not be micromanaged by the White House.
For the defense department consider eliminating such things as golf courses, domestic PX and commissary stores and other non-essential spending.
Finally consider turning over some federal government functions to the states. The conservative idea of moving federal agencies out of Washington DC has considerable merit in my opinion.
The rest of my earlier suggestions follow with a few updates
I retired from the U.S. State Department in 2016 after 27 years of service. I grew up in Berkeley went to college at the University of the Pacific and graduated from the University of Washington (MA Korean Studies, MPA). I also served in the Peace Corps in Korea. I have been to 49 out of 50 states (minus Alaska) and 45 countries.
My advice, in a nutshell, is to make this a campaign about the future and your vision of the future. Paint your opponent Donald Trump as yesterday’s candidate, and mock him, calling on Grandpa Trump to retire to Florida and play golf. Depict him as senile, out of touch, corrupt and focused on returning America to the 19th Century. And call for progressive bold new ideas for the future of America. Be optimistic, be full of hope and goodwill. Freely steal from Bernie and Elizabeth’s proposals and adopt her detailed plans – after talking with her of course. Call for reform not revolution and stress competence vs. incompetence and chaos.
Hillary’s biggest mistake was in my view making it all about how bad Donald Trump is, and not giving the voters a real sense of where she wanted to take the country. and making it seemed that she thought she was entitled, and it was her time. that is a big turnoff in politics.
She also took it for granted and did not compete everywhere. You have to out hustle Trump and go everywhere – hold virtual town halls everywhere until the Corona virus threat fades away.
You have to earn the trust of the voters and can’t be seen as thinking you are entitled to the presidency because you have done your dues so to speak. That is the kiss of electoral suicide – look at Mitch Romney and Hillary Clinton – both lost because they thought that it was their time and they were entitled to the presidency, the voters simply thought otherwise and showed them the door.
And in an age where the voters were ready for a big change to the status quo, being the establishment candidate was the kiss of death. Not to mention she refused to compete everywhere. And allowed Donald Trump to paint her as “crooked Hillary” and as too much part of the establishment which the public rightly destructed so much. She could have picked Bernie Sanders as her running mate, and perhaps defeated Donald Trump. In the end she won where it did not matter and did not compete where she should have competed.
So, in this upcoming election you have to tell the voters why you are so much better for them and the country than Donald Trump. It will not be enough to run against Donald. People have to want to vote for you. Your experience counts for a lot, but it is not enough.
How to Beat Trump
talk constantly about Donald Trump being the most corrupt president in US history and that he is guilty or gross nepotism.
Finally, ignore his tweets. When he tweets something obnoxious dismiss it with the phrase “There he Goes Again”.
then talk about your bold yet pragmatic agenda over and over again.
GO BOLD OR GO HOME
The times cries out for bold progressive challenges and for fresh thinking. Make people want to vote for you as they share your vision of the possible future. and want to have a positive, can-do message. Here are my suggested policy proposals.
I would put forth a series of comprehensive bold future-oriented policies and reiterate them every chance you get. You could call them Joe’s Plan for the Future of America, or Kamala’s Contract with the American People, something along those lines.
“Let’s Boldly Go into the Future,”
and rename your campaign as “Kamala for the American People” . Use one of your great assets your reputation for being an everyday person. But be big, bold, brassy, optimistic and challenge your opponents to produce a better plan or shut up and work with you to solve the nation’s problems.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent grads, they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service.
Call for The Green New Deal
Point out time and time again China, Germany, and other countries are building the green energy resources of the future while the U.S. which invented green energy is moving back to the 19th century.
When critics say we can’t afford this, tell them we can’t afford to ruin the world for our children’s future. We can’t afford to continue burning fossil fuels. Climate change is real, and the U.S. must lead the way forward. That is what great nations do, lead the world in embracing change, in embracing the promise of the future. We can do no less.
Call to Fix Obama Care
Point out time and time again that we still have a broken down too expensive too burdensome a health care system. Point out time and time again that we have the most expensive system in the world, yet we are about 25th in terms of health care outcomes. No one in this land should fear going bankrupt if they need to get medical care. We can do this right and we must do it right.
I would acknowledge that Obama Care is not perfect and that if you had a chance to re-do it you would make it much less bureaucratic and less burdensome. But be proud of what the Democrats accomplished. Promise to fix it and make it work.
One potential fix would be to open the Federal Health Care system to anyone who needs insurance and continue to provide subsidies to keep the premiums down.
Another option would be an expansion of Medicare, so it covers about half the country.
And enact permanent paid sick leave up to a month for all companies employing more than ten people.
When Republicans proclaim that they will repeal Obamacare and replace it with something, call them on their bullshit. Demand to know the plan now or tell them to shut up and work with you to fix Obamacare.
call for a slight reduction of military spending and national security spending to beef up health care spending and universal education access.
Call to repair our alliances
Declare that our allies are our allies and our friends, and we will work with them to solve the world’s problems and restore American leadership. We will rejoin the Paris Climate Change and work to make sure it works. We will rejoin the Transpacific Partnership. and we will figure out how to work with China and even Russia to solve problems of mutual interest such as climate change. Vow to restore partnership with Mexico and Canada and Latin America as well as India and Southeast Asia. and restore ties with Europe as well. Rebuild the UN and international organizations. And join the international criminal court. Finally close Gitmo as an affront to the American system of justice and human rights. Re Israel vow to work with Palestinians and Israelis alike to restart the peace process.
Offer a New Deal to North Korea
We will continue to negotiate with the North Koreans, offering them a way towards reunification with South Korea and rejoining the world economic community. You can damn the former President here with faint praise. Say that it was good that he took the initiative to break the log jam and talk to the North, but due to his inexperience and his naivety he was unable to make a deal as the North Koreans played him. You can finish the job.
Offer to Talk with The Iranians
Tell the Iranians we are ready to talk with them and want a new deal that would benefit them and the U.S. along the lines of what we are offering the North Koreans.
Bring the Troops Home
I would call for some U.S. troops to return to the U.S., where they will be reposted along our borders and serve as adjunct border patrol agents and first responders as part of their mandatory new national service.
Rebuild America
I would gradually reduce military spending and devote resources to rebuilding America’s crumbling infrastructure. This must include high-speed trains, and must include perhaps hyper-loop technology or Maglev trains? And the next generation of airplanes as well. We must rebuild our mass transit systems. We must embrace the development of driverless vehicles. and as mentioned we must beef up health care spending and assure universal access to higher education. These must be the new national priorities. I would throw the republicans a bone offers to look at modest reductions in other government spending for example decreasing spending on NPR but not eliminating it, and a slight decrease in foreign assistance, and UN contributions etc. and other government programs could be trimmed down a bit to pay for higher priorities.
Challenge the Republicans on their “you are weakening national security” BS. When the Republican scream you are weakening national security call them out on their BS.
Ask them how repositioning troops to help deal with national security issues at home weakens national security? How does going to universal military service weaken national security? How does getting out of endless wars weaken national security? How does closing a few bases in Europe weaken national security? Or closing a golf course? Or a commissary? Point out that we already spend more on national security than any other nation on earth. How does rebuilding America’s failed infrastructure weaken national security? How does providing medical care or universal higher education which benefits the entire nation hamper national security? Challenge them to produce a better plan.
Call for Comprehensive Immigration Reform
Start by acknowledging we need to improve security at the border, but the wall is a waste of time and money that will not solve the problem. We need a comprehensive 21st century immigration policy that balances the need for continued immigration with the need to ensure that immigrants contribute to our country and enrich our country as they always have and always will. Again throw the republicans a bone offers to ensure that E Verify is widely used by all employers and punish employers who hire illegals. I would also consider getting rid of the diversity visa program and the sibling immigration category but grandfather people in that category giving them two years to complete the immigration process with no new applicants being accepted. I would also push English language skills for immigrants as one of the new requirements – they must be able to handle the immigrant visa interview in English. That is something I agree with Trump on.
Challenge the Republicans to come up a better plan and work with you to implement it.
Call for A Return to Space Including Lunar Colonies and Martian Colonies
It is time for the U.S. to lead the world again in space exploration. Offer to lead the way in building lunar and Martian colonies with the participation of the world’s other space powers.
Call for The Legalization of Marijuana, Emptying the Prisons of Marijuana Offenders
End the endless war on drugs. Repeal marijuana prohibition. Empty the prisons of marijuana offenders. End the private prison for profit system. End the prison pipeline that sweeps up brown and black youths and sucks them into prison for life. Reserve prisons for the most dangerous offenders, all other prisoners should be sentenced to community service, drug treatment or other non-prison sentences. Use the money saved by closing prisons for rebuilding infrastructure.
Gun Control
I like your gun control proposals. It is a step forward. Continue to push for universal background checks.
Fully Support LGBT rights
Fully Support the religious freedom of all Americans including non-believers
Call for a Return to traditional American civil norms that Trump has so badly damaged
For VP Pick a centrist male governor.
I like the governor of Kentucky or North Carolina The governor of Michigan would be a good choice too. the Governor of California not so much.
To sum up, be cautious, small-minded, narrowly focused, and all about how bad Donald is, you will lose.
In any event, I believe that the time is now to call for national service in exchange for free college tuition/vocational training or grants to open small businesses. Three years of service followed by four years of either college/technical training, or assistance in opening a small business.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Dear Democratic Candidates:
I am writing to all of you and to President Trump to call for your to embrace national service in exchange for free college/technical training or assistance in opening a business.
It is time to change the game plan in Washington DC. You need a new bold proposal that will unite the country and heal the divisions. My proposal is for you to embrace mandatory national service for three years. Everyone finishing their service would receive full funding for college, technical training or a grant to set up their own business because after all not everyone needs to go to college, we need to encourage technical training and starting up small business as well.
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the key is that the service would be universal and all citizens and LPR’s between the ages of 18 and 25 would serve three years – no exceptions. Most would be military, but people could serve as fine fathers. adjust police officers, adjust border patrol officers, adjust teachers, peace corps volunteers or serve in state/local and federal government positions.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent graduates , they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service. and point out that shifting to a mandatory national service requirement would save the Pentagon money on salaries. the cost would be modest – minimum wage, housing, medical care and college tuition after their service. People would serve between age 18 and 25 one year of training and two years of service, with an optional second enlistment for three more years of educational benefits through PHD/professional degrees. Starting at age 18 until age 25 people will be randomly selected to begin service. those who are 25 will have until they turn 26 to report for service. They would have one year to report for service.
Free College/technical training or money to open a business in exchange for national service
Most people will start college, or tech training institute, then do military or other service, and then return to college to finish their college. That is fine. Ensure that colleges will not only accommodate that but will also offer college credits for military and other on the job training acquired during national service. This would also cut the cost of college attendance for most people to a manageable three years instead of four to five years. And of course, ensure that people can go to technical training institutes instead of a traditional college as we really need to grow the next generation of technical workers as well. and also ensure that those who wish financial assistance in setting up a small business would receive that assistance as well as we need to encourage the small business start ups as well.
After Service can compete to become an NCO/Officer or work for the Federal/State/Local/tribal government/ UN or NGO
After finishing basis service, those who wish to make a career of it could compete to become an NCO or an officer, and resume service after finishing college. And/or compete to enter government service for the Federal government or state and local government as well. and the service academies will only accept those who have finished basic service. This would apply to new service academies being set up, see below for more details.
All Must Serve
And most importantly, shared national service will help restore America’s sense that this is our land, this land belongs to everyone. The rich and the poor alike. We are all in this together. We have lost sight of that. The military has become an army of paid mercenaries recruited from the lower classes. If everyone serves, there will be less temptation to send troops into harms way. This will be a win- win for everyone except for the student loan vultures.
I would bring most of the troops home and station them along the southern border where they could be used to help bolster border security and assist as first responders to natural disaster. Sell this as real border security that will get the job done.
Establish New Service Academies for the Diplomatic, Intelligence Services/ Space Force/NASA, and law Enforcement
I would also call for four new national service academies to be set up. One would be for diplomatic and intelligence service, the other would be for law enforcement, the third would be for the Space Force/and NASA, the last would be more technical scientific agencies of the Federal government focusing on science and technology issues. These academies like the military academies including a coast guard academy, and beefing up the maritime service academy, would take only those who finished their military basis service. this would be a great way to restore our diplomatic corps and intelligence services as well as our law enforcement person. All graduates can meet their service obligation (five years post graduation) through working for Federal/State/local/tribal governments, the UN or NGO’s. all the service academies as well as the Medical Medical schools, the foreign service training center (which will be transformed into the new diplomatic/intelligence training academy) would work together on the national service academies consortium to coordinate policies and training, including post graduate training programs at the various military and other federal government training programs.
National Service Will Bring US together as one nation
I believe that this proposal could be enacted with widespread bipartisan support. It would go a long way to help heal the divisions of our country and bring us all together as a nation. I hope you will fully embrace this proposal and I look forward to discussing it with yours staff.
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Yeah, I said it. At 78-years-old, Donald is practically fossilized. You wouldn’t trust your grandpa to fix your Wi-Fi, so why let him run the country? He’s older than dirt and twice as clueless.
Like holy shit, did you see his speech at the RNC last week? The giant creep rambled on for 2 hours like he was Grandpa Simpson.
Look, the presidency is a tough gig. It needs someone with energy, someone who can stay awake past 7 PM without nodding off. Trump?
HE FALLS ASLEEP IN THE COURT.
He fell asleep during his own convention. He’s got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel. The only marathon he’s running is a nap marathon.
And let’s talk about the gaffes—Donald says some stupid insane shit that doesn’t make sense every single time he speaks. The only people it makes sense to are also totally delusional Christian Nationalist freaks like Marjorie Taylore Greene.
And don’t get me started on the health issues. Remember that mysterious trip to Walter Reed? Make America great again? This man can’t handle a ramp. The only thing he can make great again is the act of faceplanting into the ground.
So, here’s the divine decree: Trump, pack it up. Go home, put on your slippers, and watch Matlock reruns. Leave running the country to someone who can remember what day it is without checking Fox News. It’s time for you to drop out, you crusty old bag of assholes.
Now that I, the LORD THY GOD, have brought attention to this issue, I am sure the media will be obsessing about it every day from here on out.
Before we start: I did a YouTube thing about Biden last night, if you’re interested.
Now let’s go.
(1) The Democratic party is a healthy institution.
On the night of June 27, the various power centers within the Democratic party began a difficult conversation: Was Joe Biden still capable of running a vigorous campaign?
Over three weeks the party reached a diffuse—if not unanimous—consensus: He was not. This consensus was the product of all levels of the party: Elder statesmen such as Nancy Pelosi, elected Democrats analyzing their own future prospects, donors making decisions about spending, and the main body of public opinion among Democratic voters.
Once this consensus was reached, the various power centers began a dialogue with the party’s leader, President Biden. The party expressed its choice. Biden pushed back. The party took up the question again and, after due consideration, held firm.
Joe Biden then stepped aside for the good of the nation.
This is how healthy institutions are supposed to work.
At The Bulwark there has been a lot of drama over the last three weeks. We told you what we really thought, even though it meant making some people mad.
Our mission is to have honest and real conversations. Because that’s what healthy institutions do.
Right here, in the Bulwark community, those conversations were great. I mean, they were often painful. But they were always civil and conducted in good faith.
How special is this community? We had one member who was so disappointed in us that he cancelled his subscription and then came back to the comments every day to try to convince others to cancel their subscriptions, too. And he did it passionately, but with respect.
Where do you find people like that on the internet? It was amazing.
The coming weeks are going to be full of history. Come and ride through it with us.
2. The process which elevated Kamala Harris was sensible.
The Democratic party made another institutional decision in parallel with the Biden question: It vetted Kamala Harris.
This subroutine executed in the background, but it was active. Democratic voters began to consider her as the nominee and polling showed that they were comfortable with her. Party elders evaluated her fitness. Donors and elected Democrats took her measure. The fact that no anti-Harris groundswell—or even boom let—emerged is proof that the party decided that Harris was an acceptable nominee.
After Biden blessed Harris on Sunday afternoon, the party coalesced around her in much the way it did Biden after the New Hampshire primary in 2020.
The Democratic party will enter the election more unified than it had been pre-debate.
3. Kamala Harris can run as an insurgent, but with the advantages of an incumbent.
The largest advantage of incumbency is that a candidate does not have to take base-pleasing positions during a primary campaign that can hurt him during a general election.
Because of the extraordinary nature of her ascendence, Harris possesses this advantage. She will carry nearly every advantage of incumbency and yet she can credibly position herself as this election’s change agent.
4. Trump is holding the age bomb.
The Trump campaign spent two years creating a political bomb concerning old age. They assumed that they could plant this bomb at the feet of Joe Biden.
Trump is now the one holding the age bomb. He is not only a full generation older than Harris—everything about him looks geriatric by comparison. From his gait to his bronzed-over pallor; from the way he rambles and gets lost in sentences to his inability to keep facts straight.
Every split screen now makes Trump look old and decrepit by comparison.
That’s more money than any Democrat has ever raised in a single day. It’s twice as much as Trump raised following his felony conviction. If this doesn’t snap your head back, it should.
Because it’s as good a proxy as you’ll find for excitement.
It will be several days until we have polling with a more detailed view of Harris’s support from Democratic voters, but it is already clear that she will perform much better than Biden has within her party.
Here’s my advice: You should be open to the idea that Harris could ride a wave of excitement and passion that absolutely no one was seeing until Biden stepped aside. I’m talking Obama ‘08-levels of energy.
It’s not a given. But it’s in the realm of the possible. Keep your eyes peeled for it.
At the debate, Donald Trump also demonstrated (again) that he is unfit for office. He rambled and lied incoherently. He is a convicted felon. A jury found him guilty of sexual assault. He has said he wants to be a “dictator” and that he wants to “terminate” parts of the Constitution. He selected as his running mate a man who advised disobeying orders from the Supreme Court and forcing a constitutional crisis.
Until last week there was nothing stopping the Republican party from forcing Trump off the ticket. The party elders and elected officials could have demanded that Trump step aside. Republican voters could have said that they had no confidence in his ability to govern. Donors could have closed their wallets.
But the plain fact is that not one single Republican called on Trump to step aside.
Not one.
Why? Because the various precincts of the Republican party understand that they hold no power—at all—over Trump. They could not ask him to withdraw from the race. Even broaching the subject would be grounds for excommunication from the party.
The Democratic party is a functioning institution, with checks and balances, constituencies and power structures. Like any institution, it is amorphous and its decision making is mostly organic.
The Republican party is an autocracy where the only thing that matters is the will of the leader. All power flows through him. All decisions are made by him. There are no competing power centers—only vassal states overseen by his noblemen.
One of the reasons the last three weeks have been so difficult is because Democrats were not choosing between a “good” outcome and a “bad” outcome.
Those sorts of choices are easy.
Instead, Democrats were tasked with deciding between least-bad options. Humans rebel against the idea of “least-bad.” When faced with choices, we want to believe that at least one of them is “good.”
When the first real Harris-vs.-Trump polling comes out next week we’ll see how big of a hole she’s in. But unlike Biden, Harris has the ability to spend the next three months on offense, all day, every day. If she can deliver the goods, she has a puncher’s chance.
A slight push-back against those who believe Biden took too long to step aside:
It was three and a half weeks from the debate to Biden pulling out. That’s it.
Joe Biden is the president, but he’s also just a man. Coming to a decision like this one—an unprecedented decision—is hard. There’s a lot to weigh and there’s a tremendous responsibility to get it right.
My own view is that Biden made the call basically as quickly as possible. He couldn’t have done it the week of the NATO summit. Then Trump was shot in the ear. Then there was the Republican convention. To my mind, Biden’s timing on this was optimal, actually.
Nothing about Joe Biden’s presidency was inevitable. Not his candidacy. Not his victory over Trump. Not his withdrawal from reelection.
At nearly every turn, Biden did the right thing for America.
His legacy is assured. He will be remembered as one of the great modern presidents.
I said this last night and I’ll say it again. History had its eye on Joe Biden, and he met the moment. He did his part. Now it’s up to Kamala Harris and us to do ours.
In the coming weeks we will find out if the people who said, “I hate Trump, but Biden is too old” really meant it.
Will they find some new excuse for why they have to vote for Trump? Will they become unconcerned about the risks of old age and cognitive decline in a president?
I’m not talking about partisan public personalities on Twitter. I’m talking about swing voters: The kind of Trump-to-Biden voters who have been backsliding in Trump’s direction.
Sarah’s focus groups are going to be absolutely vital for understanding how this group thinks. Don’t miss them.
for about an hour after Biden’s announcement, I ran around with my hair on fire. I’d just spent a month warning everyone about the chaos that Biden dropping out would bring — infighting, battles over fundraising, lawsuits, atonal music, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together — mass hysteria.
and then a thing happened that I absolutely did not see coming: just about the entire Democratic establishment immediately threw their support behind Kamala Harris.
Mr. Biden endorsed Ms. Harris within minutes on Sunday afternoon. Before she had uttered a word about her intentions, he was swiftly followed by other party leaders, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, key Democratic senators and influential House members. By the evening, Mr. Shapiro had publicly backed Ms. Harris after a phone call from her. She also picked up endorsements from Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, Mr. Cooper and Mr. Kelly.
A coalition of former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley voters pledged their support for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid on Sunday, hours after President Joe Biden announced that he was dropping out of the race.
Joe Biden remains a master at doing politics. Dark Brandon dark-Brandon the shit out of his passing of the torch. clearly, this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision. Joe had to have worked behind the scenes to shore up this much immediate support for Kamala. he made sure not one word of any this leaked. he timed the announcement of his decision so that Donny and the Republicans spent the entire convention running against the wrong candidate. and the pièce de résistance —
Sending out a press release on Sunday afternoon, after the morning talk shows, totally screwed the media. No video clips, no “breaking news,” no chance for pundits to comment on how he sounded, looked, walked, etc. No chance to schedule guests to pick him apart as he spoke. He totally starved them of clicks and eyeballs, in repayment for them starving his candidacy of positive coverage purely for the sake of clicks and eyeballs.
look, I didn’t want any of this to happen. Biden was my guy, and I was prepared to back Joe all the way to November and beyond. but, that said, I have to admit that last night I slept better than I have any time in the last month.
now let’s turn our attention to all the people who need to fuck all the way off.
Stelter spent a month screaming that JOE MUST GO — but now that he’s gotten what he wanted, he’s moved the goalposts to JOE MUST GO BUT NOT LIKE THIS. some people are just never happy.
“some” is doing a fuck-ton of heavy lifting here. are these “some” black voters in the room with us right now?
note to Times nepo-publisher Arthur Gregg Sulzberger: it doesn’t matter how hard you suck up to Donny, he’s not going to make the Times his official state media if he takes power. stop trying.
in fact, all the nitwits still rooting for their own personal fantasy ticket can fuck off.
how many times does Michelle Obama need to state that she has no interest in running for office? you’re wasting everyone’s time with this mental masturbation. do it in private.
we all knew that the Republicans were immediately going to pivot to “now Joe Biden must resign” — but these clowns are not thinking this through. first of all, Joe quitting is a big bowl of never gonna happen. second, does the GOP really want to spend the next three months running against President Kamala Harris?
now this is awesome: the Republican Party just realized that they’re no longer running against icky old Joe Biden who smells bad and is too demented to realize that he died six months ago. they created this whole fiction about Joe Biden and now they can’t use any of it — and they’re freaking the fuck out.
“they held a primary! people, they had ballots! they filled out circles! they went to the voting booths! they spent money on advertisements! and as President Trump, said the Republican Party spent tens of millions of dollars running against Joe Biden! now they just woke up one morning and said never mind, we’re canceling the entire primary, we’re getting rid of our candidate and pretending the election just never even happened and let donors hand-pick a new nominee?”
it’s not fair! how dare the Democrats come together around a young and vibrant candidate, leaving our guy to be the old fart in the race.
boo fucking hoo, you grievance-babies. you demanded this happen, and now you’re whining about it. shut the fuck up and dry your eyes. here’s your binky.
as Stephen Miller noted in his crybaby rant, Donny Convict is hopping mad. he’s demanding to speak to Sleepy Brandon’s manager because he wants his money back.
So, we are forced to spend time and money on fighting Crooked Joe Biden, he polls badly after having a terrible debate, and quits the race. Now we have to start all over again. Shouldn’t the Republican Party be reimbursed for fraud in that everybody around Joe, including his doctors and the Fake News Media, knew he was not capable of running for, or being, President? Just askin’?
it’s the prosecutor versus the felon. I’ll take that.
everyone is entitled to my own opinion as a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
for about an hour after Biden’s announcement, I ran around with my hair on fire. I’d just spent a month warning everyone about the chaos that Biden dropping out would bring — infighting, battles over fundraising, lawsuits, atonal music, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together — mass hysteria.
and then a thing happened that I absolutely did not see coming: just about the entire Democratic establishment immediately threw their support behind Kamala Harris.
Mr. Biden endorsed Ms. Harris within minutes on Sunday afternoon. Before she had uttered a word about her intentions, he was swiftly followed by other party leaders, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, key Democratic senators and influential House members. By the evening, Mr. Shapiro had publicly backed Ms. Harris after a phone call from her. She also picked up endorsements from Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, Mr. Cooper and Mr. Kelly.
A coalition of former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley voters pledged their support for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid on Sunday, hours after President Joe Biden announced that he was dropping out of the race.
Joe Biden remains a master at doing politics. Dark Brandon dark-Brandon the shit out of his passing of the torch. clearly, this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision. Joe had to have worked behind the scenes to shore up this much immediate support for Kamala. he made sure not one word of any this leaked. he timed the announcement of his decision so that Donny and the Republicans spent the entire convention running against the wrong candidate. and the pièce de résistance —
Sending out a press release on Sunday afternoon, after the morning talk shows, totally screwed the media. No video clips, no “breaking news,” no chance for pundits to comment on how he sounded, looked, walked, etc. No chance to schedule guests to pick him apart as he spoke. He totally starved them of clicks and eyeballs, in repayment for them starving his candidacy of positive coverage purely for the sake of clicks and eyeballs.
look, I didn’t want any of this to happen. Biden was my guy, and I was prepared to back Joe all the way to November and beyond. but, that said, I have to admit that last night I slept better than I have any time in the last month.
now let’s turn our attention to all the people who need to fuck all the way off.
Stelter spent a month screaming that JOE MUST GO — but now that he’s gotten what he wanted, he’s moved the goalposts to JOE MUST GO BUT NOT LIKE THIS. some people are just never happy.
“some” is doing a fuck-ton of heavy lifting here. are these “some” black voters in the room with us right now?
note to Times nepo-publisher Arthur Gregg Sulzberger: it doesn’t matter how hard you suck up to Donny, he’s not going to make the Times his official state media if he takes power. stop trying.
in fact, all the nitwits still rooting for their own personal fantasy ticket can fuck off.
how many times does Michelle Obama need to state that she has no interest in running for office? you’re wasting everyone’s time with this mental masturbation. do it in private.
we all knew that the Republicans were immediately going to pivot to “now Joe Biden must resign” — but these clowns are not thinking this through. first of all, Joe quitting is a big bowl of never gonna happen. second, does the GOP really want to spend the next three months running against President Kamala Harris?
now this is awesome: the Republican Party just realized that they’re no longer running against icky old Joe Biden who smells bad and is too demented to realize that he died six months ago. they created this whole fiction about Joe Biden and now they can’t use any of it — and they’re freaking the fuck out.
“they held a primary! people, they had ballots! they filled out circles! they went to the voting booths! they spent money on advertisements! and as President Trump, said the Republican Party spent tens of millions of dollars running against Joe Biden! now they just woke up one morning and said never mind, we’re canceling the entire primary, we’re getting rid of our candidate and pretending the election just never even happened and let donors hand-pick a new nominee?”
it’s not fair! how dare the Democrats come together around a young and vibrant candidate, leaving our guy to be the old fart in the race.
boo fucking hoo, you grievance-babies. you demanded this happen, and now you’re whining about it. shut the fuck up and dry your eyes. here’s your binky.
as Stephen Miller noted in his crybaby rant, Donny Convict is hopping mad. he’s demanding to speak to Sleepy Brandon’s manager because he wants his money back.
So, we are forced to spend time and money on fighting Crooked Joe Biden, he polls badly after having a terrible debate, and quits the race. Now we have to start all over again. Shouldn’t the Republican Party be reimbursed for fraud in that everybody around Joe, including his doctors and the Fake News Media, knew he was not capable of running for, or being, President? Just askin’?
it’s the prosecutor versus the felon. I’ll take that.
everyone is entitled to my own opinion as a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
I still believe in her and in the basic goodness of the American people. I believe that the people will choose goodness over evil, love over hate, and progress over going back. When faced with the choice – a demented, deranged senile old man filled with hatred and revenge, or a competent accomplished woman they will make the right choice.
Congratulations, my Berkeley hometown girl. You got this girl.
Go Bold or go Home!
Berkeley Girl Makes It
The news
that Biden
was stepping down
throwing his support.
for Kamala Harris
as President.
filled me with joy
and anticipation.
Kamala Harris
attended my elementary school
Thousand Oaks in Berkeley
a few years before me.
and is a Berkeley girl
through and through.
Go Berkely !
Thousand Oak Girl I say.
T.O Toughie Girl Power.
the first Female VP
of Asian descent
the first VP
of black descent
the first Caribbean
to be on the ticket.
and the first Hindu
as well.
and the first
Berkeley native
on the ticket.
it is time
for Berkeley to rule
in my humble opinion.
Kamala
here’s what I would campaign on.
I retired from the U.S. State Department in 2016 after 27 years of service. I grew up in Berkeley (attended Thousand Oaks school a few years before you did, went to college at the University of the Pacific and graduated from the University of Washington (MA Korean Studies, MPA). I also served in the Peace Corps in Korea, and served 27 years in the Foreign Service serving in ten countries. I have been to all 50 States and 50 countries.
the theme would be getting stuff done for the people!
Reforming the Federal Budget
This is perhaps boring to voters but very important to the long-term stability of the country.
I would call upon Congress to change how they do budgets and shift to a two-year budgetary cycle. The first year of Congress would be devoted to passing the two-year budget, the second year would be devoted to oversight and supplemental budget requests.
Coupled that shifting to a calendar year budget. Eliminate the possibility of government shutdowns by enacting automatic CR’s if budgets are not passed on time. But also require budgets to be passed on time – December 1 in the prior year. If a budget is not passed on time, keep congress in town until the budget is passed. And if for some reason the budget is not passed, dinge congressional salaries until the budget is passed.
Second commission a study to look at our tax situation and make suggestions for common sense tax reform. Start by figuring out how much money the government spends in a given year, the reform of the tax code to generate most of the revenue from taxes. Consider a national sales tax as well. Reserve borrowing for large scale infrastructure, and military spending. And consider a surcharge on income of about 25 million per year.
I would also look at federal spending and ask that all departments identify lower priority projects with a required 5% reduction in federal spending per agency over a four-year period, except for health related and education related agencies which would be given a considerable bump up in spending. I would do this for three years so that in three years overall spending has been reduced by about 10 percent. Leave it up to the agencies to identify lower priority projects that should not be micromanaged by the White House.
For the defense department consider eliminating such things as golf courses, domestic PX and commissary stores and other non-essential spending.
Finally consider turning over some federal government functions to the states. The conservative idea of moving federal agencies out of Washington DC has considerable merit in my opinion.
My advice, in a nutshell, is to make this a campaign about the future and your vision of the future. Paint your opponent Donald Trump as yesterday’s candidate, and mock him, calling on Grandpa Trump to retire to Florida and play golf. Depict him as senile, out of touch, corrupt and focused on returning America to the 19th Century. And call for progressive bold new ideas for the future of America. Be optimistic, be full of hope and goodwill. Freely steal from Bernie and Elizabeth’s proposals and adopt her detailed plans – after talking with her of course. Call for reform not revolution and stress competence vs. incompetence and chaos.
Hillary’s biggest mistake was in my view making it all about how bad Donald Trump is, and not giving the voters a real sense of where she wanted to take the country. and making it seemed that she thought she was entitled, and it was her time. that is a big turnoff in politics.
She also took it for granted and did not compete everywhere. You have to out hustle Trump and go everywhere – hold virtual town halls everywhere until the Corona virus threat fades away.
You have to earn the trust of the voters and can’t be seen as thinking you are entitled to the presidency because you have done your dues so to speak. That is the kiss of electoral suicide – look at Mitch Romney and Hillary Clinton – both lost because they thought that it was their time and they were entitled to the presidency, the voters simply thought otherwise and showed them the door.
And in an age where the voters were ready for a big change to the status quo, being the establishment candidate was the kiss of death. Not to mention she refused to compete everywhere. And allowed Donald Trump to paint her as “crooked Hillary” and as too much part of the establishment which the public rightly destructed so much. She could have picked Bernie Sanders as her running mate, and perhaps defeated Donald Trump. In the end she won where it did not matter and did not compete where she should have competed.
So, in this upcoming election you have to tell the voters why you are so much better for them and the country than Donald Trump. It will not be enough to run against Donald. People have to want to vote for you. Your experience counts for a lot, but it is not enough.
How to Beat Trump
talk constantly about Donald Trump being the most corrupt president in US history and that he is guilty or gross nepotism. Call him Conman Don, for felon Con, or despicable me wanna be Don.
Finally, ignore his tweets. When he tweets something obnoxious dismiss it with the phrase “There he Goes Again”.
then talk about your bold yet pragmatic agenda over and over again. Remember the best way to handle a bully is to mock them over and over again. They can’t handle that and he will become more unhinged and dangerous as you mock him. So Mock him, girl. He deserves it. and in the debate call him on his BS brutally fact check his ass live on TV. Show the world what an ignorant senile old man he has become.
GO BOLD OR GO HOME
The times cries out for bold progressive challenges and for fresh thinking. Make people want to vote for you as they share your vision of the possible future. and want to have a positive, can-do message. Here are my suggested policy proposals.
I would put forth a series of comprehensive bold future-oriented policies and reiterate them every chance you get. You could call them Joe’s Plan for the Future of America, or Kamala’s Contract with the American People, something along those lines.
“Let’s Boldly Go into the Future,”
and rename your campaign as “Kamala for the American People” . Use one of your great assets your reputation for being an everyday person. But be big, bold, brassy, optimistic and challenge your opponents to produce a better plan or shut up and work with you to solve the nation’s problems.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent grads, they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service.
Call for The Green New Deal
Point out time and time again China, Germany, and other countries are building the green energy resources of the future while the U.S. which invented green energy is moving back to the 19th century.
When critics say we can’t afford this, tell them we can’t afford to ruin the world for our children’s future. We can’t afford to continue burning fossil fuels. Climate change is real, and the U.S. must lead the way forward. That is what great nations do, lead the world in embracing change, in embracing the promise of the future. We can do no less.
Call to Fix Obama Care
Point out time and time again that we still have a broken down too expensive too burdensome a health care system. Point out time and time again that we have the most expensive system in the world, yet we are about 25th in terms of health care outcomes. No one in this land should fear going bankrupt if they need to get medical care. We can do this right and we must do it right.
I would acknowledge that Obama Care is not perfect and that if you had a chance to re-do it you would make it much less bureaucratic and less burdensome. But be proud of what the Democrats accomplished. Promise to fix it and make it work.
One potential fix would be to open the Federal Health Care system to anyone who needs insurance and continue to provide subsidies to keep the premiums down.
Another option would be an expansion of Medicare, so it covers about half the country.
And enact permanent paid sick leave up to a month for all companies employing more than ten people.
When Republicans proclaim that they will repeal Obamacare and replace it with something, call them on their bullshit. Demand to know the plan now or tell them to shut up and work with you to fix Obamacare.
call for a slight reduction of military spending and national security spending to beef up health care spending and universal education access.
Call to repair our alliances
Declare that our allies are our allies and our friends, and we will work with them to solve the world’s problems and restore American leadership. We will rejoin the Paris Climate Change and work to make sure it works. We will rejoin the Transpacific Partnership. and we will figure out how to work with China and even Russia to solve problems of mutual interest such as climate change. Vow to restore partnership with Mexico and Canada and Latin America as well as India and Southeast Asia. and restore ties with Europe as well. Rebuild the UN and international organizations. And join the international criminal court. Finally close Gitmo as an affront to the American system of justice and human rights. Re Israel vow to work with Palestinians and Israelis alike to restart the peace process.
Offer a New Deal to North Korea
We will continue to negotiate with the North Koreans, offering them a way towards reunification with South Korea and rejoining the world economic community. You can damn the former President here with faint praise. Say that it was good that he took the initiative to break the log jam and talk to the North, but due to his inexperience and his naivety he was unable to make a deal as the North Koreans played him. You can finish the job.
Offer to Talk with The Iranians
Tell the Iranians we are ready to talk with them and want a new deal that would benefit them and the U.S. along the lines of what we are offering the North Koreans.
Bring the Troops Home
I would call for some U.S. troops to return to the U.S., where they will be reposted along our borders and serve as adjunct border patrol agents and first responders as part of their mandatory new national service.
Rebuild America
I would gradually reduce military spending and devote resources to rebuilding America’s crumbling infrastructure. This must include high-speed trains, and must include perhaps hyper-loop technology or Maglev trains? And the next generation of airplanes as well. We must rebuild our mass transit systems. We must embrace the development of driverless vehicles. and as mentioned we must beef up health care spending and assure universal access to higher education. These must be the new national priorities. I would throw the republicans a bone offers to look at modest reductions in other government spending for example decreasing spending on NPR but not eliminating it, and a slight decrease in foreign assistance, and UN contributions etc. and other government programs could be trimmed down a bit to pay for higher priorities.
Challenge the Republicans on their “you are weakening national security” BS. When the Republican scream you are weakening national security call them out on their BS.
Ask them how repositioning troops to help deal with national security issues at home weakens national security? How does going to universal military service weaken national security? How does getting out of endless wars weaken national security? How does closing a few bases in Europe weaken national security? Or closing a golf course? Or a commissary? Point out that we already spend more on national security than any other nation on earth. How does rebuilding America’s failed infrastructure weaken national security? How does providing medical care or universal higher education which benefits the entire nation hamper national security? Challenge them to produce a better plan.
Call for Comprehensive Immigration Reform
Start by acknowledging we need to improve security at the border, but the wall is a waste of time and money that will not solve the problem. We need a comprehensive 21st century immigration policy that balances the need for continued immigration with the need to ensure that immigrants contribute to our country and enrich our country as they always have and always will. Again throw the republicans a bone offers to ensure that E Verify is widely used by all employers and punish employers who hire illegals. I would also consider getting rid of the diversity visa program and the sibling immigration category but grandfather people in that category giving them two years to complete the immigration process with no new applicants being accepted. I would also push English language skills for immigrants as one of the new requirements – they must be able to handle the immigrant visa interview in English. That is something I agree with Trump on.
Challenge the Republicans to come up a better plan and work with you to implement it.
Call for A Return to Space Including Lunar Colonies and Martian Colonies
It is time for the U.S. to lead the world again in space exploration. Offer to lead the way in building lunar and Martian colonies with the participation of the world’s other space powers.
Call for The Legalization of Marijuana, Emptying the Prisons of Marijuana Offenders
End the endless war on drugs. Repeal marijuana prohibition. Empty the prisons of marijuana offenders. End the private prison for profit system. End the prison pipeline that sweeps up brown and black youths and sucks them into prison for life. Reserve prisons for the most dangerous offenders, all other prisoners should be sentenced to community service, drug treatment or other non-prison sentences. Use the money saved by closing prisons for rebuilding infrastructure.
Gun Control
I like your gun control proposals. It is a step forward. Continue to push for universal background checks.
Fully Support LGBT rights
Fully Support the religious freedom of all Americans including non-believers. Call to re-ignite Roe V Wade standards.
Call for a Return to traditional American civil norms that Trump has so badly damaged
call for reforming the Supreme Court. Including nominating the first hispanic member.
For VP Pick a centrist male governor.
I like the governor of Kentucky or North Carolina The governor of Michigan would be a good choice too. the Governor of California not so much.
To sum up, be cautious, small-minded, narrowly focused, and all about how bad Donald is, you will lose.
In any event, I believe that the time is now to call for national service in exchange for free college tuition/vocational training or grants to open small businesses. Three years of service followed by four years of either college/technical training, or assistance in opening a small business.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Dear Democratic Candidates:
I am writing to all of you and to President Trump to call for your to embrace national service in exchange for free college/technical training or assistance in opening a business.
It is time to change the game plan in Washington DC. You need a new bold proposal that will unite the country and heal the divisions. My proposal is for you to embrace mandatory national service for three years. Everyone finishing their service would receive full funding for college, technical training or a grant to set up their own business because after all not everyone needs to go to college, we need to encourage technical training and starting up small business as well.
the key is that the service would be universal and all citizens and LPR’s between the ages of 18 and 25 would serve three years – no exceptions. Most would be military, but people could serve as fine fathers. adjust police officers, adjust border patrol officers, adjust teachers, peace corps volunteers or serve in state/local and federal government positions.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent graduates , they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service. and point out that shifting to a mandatory national service requirement would save the Pentagon money on salaries. the cost would be modest – minimum wage, housing, medical care and college tuition after their service. People would serve between age 18 and 25 one year of training and two years of service, with an optional second enlistment for three more years of educational benefits through PHD/professional degrees. Starting at age 18 until age 25 people will be randomly selected to begin service. those who are 25 will have until they turn 26 to report for service. They would have one year to report for service.
Free College/Technical Training or Money to Open a Business in Exchange for National Service
Most people will start college, or tech training institute, then do military or other service, and then return to college to finish their college. That is fine. Ensure that colleges will not only accommodate that but will also offer college credits for military and other on -the-job training acquired during national service. This would also cut the cost of college attendance for most people to a manageable three years instead of four to five years. And of course, ensure that people can go to technical training institutes instead of a traditional college as we really ,need to grow the next generation of technical workers as well. and also ensure that those who wish financial assistance in setting up a small business would receive that assistance as well as we need to encourage the small business start-ups as well.
After Service can compete to become an NCO/Officer or work for the Federal/State/Local/tribal government/ UN or NGO
After finishing basic service, those who wish to make a career of it could compete to become an NCO or an officer and resume service after finishing college. And/or compete to enter government service for the Federal government or state and local government as well. The service academies will only accept those who have finished basic service. This would apply to new service academies being set up, see below for more details.
All Must Serve
And most importantly, shared national service will help restore America’s sense that this is our land, this land belongs to everyone. The rich and the poor alike. We are all in this together. We have lost sight of that. The military has become an army of paid mercenaries recruited from the lower classes. If everyone serves, there will be less temptation to send troops into harm’s way. This will be a win- win for everyone except for the student loan vultures.
I would bring most of the troops home and station them along the southern border where they could be used to help bolster border security, and assist as first responders to natural disaster. Sell this as real border security that will get the job done.
Establish New Service Academies for the Diplomatic, Intelligence Services/ Space Force/NASA, and law Enforcement
I would also call for four new national service academies to be set up. One would be for diplomatic and intelligence service, the other would be for law enforcement, the third would be for the Space Force/and NASA, the last would be more technical scientific agencies of the Federal government focusing on science and technology issues. These academies, like the military academies including a coast guard academy, and beefing up the maritime service academy, would take only those who finished their military basis service. this would be a great way to restore our diplomatic corps and intelligence services as well as our law enforcement person. All graduates can meet their service obligation (five years post graduation) through working for Federal/State/local/tribal governments, the UN or NGO’s. all the service academies as well as the Medical Medical schools, the foreign service training center (which will be transformed into the new diplomatic/intelligence training academy) would work together on the national service academies consortium to coordinate policies and training, including postgraduate training programs at the various military and other federal government training programs.
National Service Will Bring US together as one nation
I believe that this proposal could be enacted with widespread bipartisan support. It would go a long way to help heal the divisions of our country and bring us all together as a nation. I hope you will fully embrace this proposal and I look forward to discussing it with your staff.
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God here. Now that President Biden has heroically passed the torch to Kamala Harris, can we talk about the orange elephant in the room?
TRUMP MUST DROP OUT BECAUSE HE’S OLD AS FUCK.
Yeah, I said it. At 78-years-old, Donald is practically fossilized. You wouldn’t trust your grandpa to fix your Wi-Fi, so why let him run the country? He’s older than dirt and twice as clueless.
Like holy shit, did you see his speech at the RNC last week? The giant creep rambled on for 2 hours like he was Grandpa Simpson.
Look, the presidency is a tough gig. It needs someone with energy, someone who can stay awake past 7 PM without nodding off. Trump?
HE FALLS ASLEEP IN THE COURT.
He fell asleep during his own convention. He’s got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel. The only marathon he’s running is a nap marathon.
And let’s talk about the gaffes—Donald says some stupid insane shit that doesn’t make sense every single time he speaks. The only people it makes sense to are also totally delusional Christian Nationalist freaks like Marjorie Taylore Greene.
And don’t get me started on the health issues. Remember that mysterious trip to Walter Reed? Make America great again? This man can’t handle a ramp. The only thing he can make great again is the act of face planting into the ground.
So, here’s the divine decree: Trump, pack it up. Go home, put on your slippers, and watch Matlock reruns. Leave running the country to someone who can remember what day it is without checking Fox News. It’s time for you to drop out, you crusty old bag of assholes.
Now that I, the LORD THY GOD, have brought attention to this issue, I am sure the media will be obsessing about it every day from here on out.
Before we start: I did a YouTube thing about Biden last night, if you’re interested.
Now let’s go.
(1) The Democratic party is a healthy institution.
On the night of June 27, the various power centers within the Democratic party began a difficult conversation: Was Joe Biden still capable of running a vigorous campaign?
Over three weeks the party reached a diffuse—if not unanimous—consensus: He was not. This consensus was the product of all levels of the party: Elder statesmen such as Nancy Pelosi, elected Democrats analyzing their own future prospects, donors making decisions about spending, and the main body of public opinion among Democratic voters.
Once this consensus was reached, the various power centers began a dialogue with the party’s leader, President Biden. The party expressed its choice. Biden pushed back. The party took up the question again and, after due consideration, held firm.
Joe Biden then stepped aside for the good of the nation.
This is how healthy institutions are supposed to work.
At The Bulwark there has been a lot of drama over the last three weeks. We told you what we really thought, even though it meant making some people mad.
Our mission is to have honest and real conversations. Because that’s what healthy institutions do.
Right here, in the Bulwark community, those conversations were great. I mean, they were often painful. But they were always civil and conducted in good faith.
How special is this community? We had one member who was so disappointed in us that he cancelled his subscription and then came back to the comments every day to try to convince others to cancel their subscriptions, too. And he did it passionately, but with respect.
Where do you find people like that on the internet? It was amazing.
The coming weeks are going to be full of history. Come and ride through it with us.
J The process which elevated Kamala Harris was sensible.
The Democratic party made another institutional decision in parallel with the Biden question: It vetted Kamala Harris.
This subroutine executed in the background, but it was active. Democratic voters began to consider her as the nominee and polling showed that they were comfortable with her. Party elders evaluated her fitness. Donors and elected Democrats took her measure. The fact that no anti-Harris groundswell—or even boom let—emerged is proof that the party decided that Harris was an acceptable nominee.
After Biden blessed Harris on Sunday afternoon, the party coalesced around her in much the way it did Biden after the New Hampshire primary in 2020.
The Democratic party will enter the election more unified than it had been pre-debate.
3. Kamala Harris can run as an insurgent, but with the advantages of an incumbent.
The largest advantage of incumbency is that a candidate does not have to take base-pleasing positions during a primary campaign that can hurt him during a general election.
Because of the extraordinary nature of her ascendence, Harris possesses this advantage. She will carry nearly every advantage of incumbency and yet she can credibly position herself as this election’s change agent.
4. Trump is holding the age bomb.
The Trump campaign spent two years creating a political bomb concerning old age. They assumed that they could plant this bomb at the feet of Joe Biden.
Trump is now the one holding the age bomb. He is not only a full generation older than Harris—everything about him looks geriatric by comparison. From his gait to his bronzed-over pallor; from the way he rambles and gets lost in sentences to his inability to keep facts straight.
Every split screen now makes Trump look old and decrepit by comparison.
5. There was enormous pent-up demand among Democrats for a younger leader.
That’s more money than any Democrat has ever raised in a single day. It’s twice as much as Trump raised following his felony conviction. If this doesn’t snap your head back, it should.
Because it’s as good a proxy as you’ll find for excitement.
It will be several days until we have polling with a more detailed view of Harris’s support from Democratic voters, but it is already clear that she will perform much better than Biden has within her party.
Here’s my advice: You should be open to the idea that Harris could ride a wave of excitement and passion that absolutely no one was seeing until Biden stepped aside. I’m talking Obama ‘08-levels of energy.
It’s not a given. But it’s in the realm of the possible. Keep your eyes peeled for it.
6. The Republican party is a failed state.
At the debate, Donald Trump also demonstrated (again) that he is unfit for office. He rambled and lied incoherently. He is a convicted felon. A jury found him guilty of sexual assault. He has said he wants to be a “dictator” and that he wants to “terminate” parts of the Constitution. He selected as his running mate a man who advised disobeying orders from the Supreme Court and forcing a constitutional crisis.
Until last week there was nothing stopping the Republican party from forcing Trump off the ticket. The party elders and elected officials could have demanded that Trump step aside. Republican voters could have said that they had no confidence in his ability to govern. Donors could have closed their wallets.
But the plain fact is that not one single Republican called on Trump to step aside.
Not one.
Why? Because the various precincts of the Republican party understand that they hold no power—at all—over Trump. They could not ask him to withdraw from the race. Even broaching the subject would be grounds for excommunication from the party.
The Democratic party is a functioning institution, with checks and balances, constituencies and power structures. Like any institution, it is amorphous and its decision making is mostly organic.
The Republican party is an autocracy where the only thing that matters is the will of the leader. All power flows through him. All decisions are made by him. There are no competing power centers—only vassal states overseen by his noblemen.
7. Harris is an underdog.
One of the reasons the last three weeks have been so difficult is because Democrats were not choosing between a “good” outcome and a “bad” outcome.
Those sorts of choices are easy.
Instead, Democrats were tasked with deciding between least-bad options. Humans rebel against the idea of “least-bad.” When faced with choices, we want to believe that at least one of them is “good.”
When the first real Harris-vs.-Trump polling comes out next week we’ll see how big of a hole she’s in. But unlike Biden, Harris has the ability to spend the next three months on offense, all day, every day. If she can deliver the goods, she has a puncher’s chance.
2. In Praise of Biden
A slight push-back against those who believe Biden took too long to step aside:
It was three and a half weeks from the debate to Biden pulling out. That’s it.
Joe Biden is the president, but he’s also just a man. Coming to a decision like this one—an unprecedented decision—is hard. There’s a lot to weigh and there’s a tremendous responsibility to get it right.
My own view is that Biden made the call basically as quickly as possible. He couldn’t have done it the week of the NATO summit. Then Trump was shot in the ear. Then there was the Republican convention. To my mind, Biden’s timing on this was optimal, actually.
Nothing about Joe Biden’s presidency was inevitable. Not his candidacy. Not his victory over Trump. Not his withdrawal from reelection.
At nearly every turn, Biden did the right thing for America.
His legacy is assured. He will be remembered as one of the great modern presidents.
I said this last night and I’ll say it again. History had its eye on Joe Biden, and he met the moment. He did his part. Now it’s up to Kamala Harris and us to do ours.
In the coming weeks we will find out if the people who said, “I hate Trump, but Biden is too old” really meant it.
Will they find some new excuse for why they have to vote for Trump? Will they become unconcerned about the risks of old age and cognitive decline in a president?
I’m not talking about partisan public personalities on Twitter. I’m talking about swing voters: The kind of Trump-to-Biden voters who have been backsliding in Trump’s direction.
Sarah’s focus groups are going to be absolutely vital for understanding how this group thinks. Don’t miss them.
for about an hour after Biden’s announcement, I ran around with my hair on fire. I’d just spent a month warning everyone about the chaos that Biden dropping out would bring — infighting, battles over fundraising, lawsuits, atonal music, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together — mass hysteria.
and then a thing happened that I absolutely did not see coming: just about the entire Democratic establishment immediately threw their support behind Kamala Harris.
Mr. Biden endorsed Ms. Harris within minutes on Sunday afternoon. Before she had uttered a word about her intentions, he was swiftly followed by other party leaders, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, key Democratic senators and influential House members. By the evening, Mr. Shapiro had publicly backed Ms. Harris after a phone call from her. She also picked up endorsements from Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, Mr. Cooper and Mr. Kelly.
A coalition of former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley voters pledged their support for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid on Sunday, hours after President Joe Biden announced that he was dropping out of the race.
Joe Biden remains a master at doing politics. Dark Brandon dark-Brandon the shit out of his passing of the torch. clearly, this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision. Joe had to have worked behind the scenes to shore up this much immediate support for Kamala. he made sure not one word of any this leaked. he timed the announcement of his decision so that Donny and the Republicans spent the entire convention running against the wrong candidate. and the pièce de résistance —
Sending out a press release on Sunday afternoon, after the morning talk shows, totally screwed the media. No video clips, no “breaking news,” no chance for pundits to comment on how he sounded, looked, walked, etc. No chance to schedule guests to pick him apart as he spoke. He totally starved them of clicks and eyeballs, in repayment for them starving his candidacy of positive coverage purely for the sake of clicks and eyeballs.
look, I didn’t want any of this to happen. Biden was my guy, and I was prepared to back Joe all the way to November and beyond. but, that said, I have to admit that last night I slept better than I have any time in the last month.
now let’s turn our attention to all the people who need to fuck all the way off.
Stelter spent a month screaming that JOE MUST GO — but now that he’s gotten what he wanted, he’s moved the goalposts to JOE MUST GO BUT NOT LIKE THIS. some people are just never happy.
“some” is doing a fuck-ton of heavy lifting here. are these “some” black voters in the room with us right now?
note to Times nepo-publisher Arthur Gregg Sulzberger: it doesn’t matter how hard you suck up to Donny, he’s not going to make the Times his official state media if he takes power. stop trying.
in fact, all the nitwits still rooting for their own personal fantasy ticket can fuck off.
how many times does Michelle Obama need to state that she has no interest in running for office? you’re wasting everyone’s time with this mental masturbation. do it in private.
we all knew that the Republicans were immediately going to pivot to “now Joe Biden must resign” — but these clowns are not thinking this through. first of all, Joe quitting is a big bowl of never gonna happen. second, does the GOP really want to spend the next three months running against President Kamala Harris?
now this is awesome: the Republican Party just realized that they’re no longer running against icky old Joe Biden who smells bad and is too demented to realize that he died six months ago. they created this whole fiction about Joe Biden and now they can’t use any of it — and they’re freaking the fuck out.
“they held a primary! people, they had ballots! they filled out circles! they went to the voting booths! they spent money on advertisements! and as president Trump, said the Republican Party spent tens of millions of dollars running against Joe Biden! now they just woke up one morning and said never mind, we’re canceling the entire primary, we’re getting rid of our candidate and pretending the election just never even happened and let donors hand-pick a new nominee?”
it’s not fair! how dare the Democrats come together around a young and vibrant candidate, leaving our guy to be the old fart in the race.
boo fucking hoo, you grievance-babies. you demanded this happen, and now you’re whining about it. shut the fuck up and dry your eyes. here’s your binky.
as Stephen Miller noted in his crybaby rant, Donny Convict is hopping mad. he’s demanding to speak to Sleepy Brandon’s manager because he wants his money back.
So, we are forced to spend time and money on fighting Crooked Joe Biden, he polls badly after having a terrible debate, and quits the race. Now we have to start all over again. Shouldn’t the Republican Party be reimbursed for fraud in that everybody around Joe, including his doctors and the Fake News Media, knew he was not capable of running for, or being, President? Just askin’?
it’s the prosecutor versus the felon. I’ll take that.
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My thoughts on the Harris Candidacy.
I still believe in her and in the basic goodness of the American people. I believe that the people will choose goodness over evil, love over hate and progress over going back.
when faced with the choice – a demented, deranged senile old man filled with hatred and revenge, or a competent accomplished woman they will make the right choice.
Congratulations, my Berkeley hometown girl. You got this girl.
Go Bold or go Home!
Berkeley Girl Makes It
The news
that Biden
was stepping down
throwing his support.
for Kamala Harris
as President.
filled me with joy
and anticipation.
Kamala Harris
attended my elementary school
Thousand Oaks in Berkeley
a few years before me.
and is a Berkeley girl
through and through.
Go Berkely !
Thousand Oak Girl I say.
T.O Toughie Girl Power.
the first Female VP
of Asian descent
the first VP
of black descent
the first Caribbean
to be on the ticket.
and the first Hindu
as well.
and the first
Berkeley native
on the ticket.
it is time
for Berkeley to rule
in my humble opinion.
Kamala
here’s what I would campaign on.
the theme would be getting stuff done for the people!
Reforming the Federal Budget
This is perhaps boring to voters but very important to the long-term stability of the country.
I would call upon Congress to change how they do budgets and shift to a two-year budgetary cycle. The first year of Congress would be devoted to passing the two-year budget, the second year would be devoted to oversight and supplemental budget requests.
Coupled that shifting to a calendar year budget. Eliminate the possibility of government shutdowns by enacting automatic CR’s if budgets are not passed on time. But also require budgets to be passed on time – December 1 in the prior year. If a budget is not passed on time, keep congress in town until the budget is passed. And if for some reason the budget is not passed, dinge congressional salaries until the budget is passed.
Second commission a study to look at our tax situation and make suggestions for common sense tax reform. Start by figuring out how much money the government spends in a given year, the reform of the tax code to generate most of the revenue from taxes. Consider a national sales tax as well. Reserve borrowing for large scale infrastructure, and military spending. And consider a surcharge on income of about 25 million per year.
I would also look at federal spending and ask that all departments identify lower priority projects with a required 5% reduction in federal spending per agency over a four year period, except for health related and education related agencies which would be given a considerable bump up in spending. I would do this for three years so that in three years overall spending has been reduced by about 10 percent. Leave it up to the agencies to identify lower priority projects that should not be micromanaged by the White House.
For the defense department consider eliminating such things as golf courses, domestic PX and commissary stores and other non-essential spending.
Finally consider turning over some federal government functions to the states. The conservative idea of moving federal agencies out of Washington DC has considerable merit in my opinion.
The rest of my earlier suggestions follow with a few updates
I retired from the U.S. State Department in 2016 after 27 years of service. I grew up in Berkeley went to college at the University of the Pacific and graduated from the University of Washington (MA Korean Studies, MPA). I also served in the Peace Corps in Korea. I have been to 49 out of 50 states (minus Alaska) and 45 countries.
My advice, in a nutshell, is to make this a campaign about the future and your vision of the future. Paint your opponent Donald Trump as yesterday’s candidate, and mock him, calling on Grandpa Trump to retire to Florida and play golf. Depict him as senile, out of touch, corrupt and focused on returning America to the 19th Century. And call for progressive bold new ideas for the future of America. Be optimistic, be full of hope and goodwill. Freely steal from Bernie and Elizabeth’s proposals and adopt her detailed plans – after talking with her of course. Call for reform not revolution and stress competence vs. incompetence and chaos.
Hillary’s biggest mistake was in my view making it all about how bad Donald Trump is, and not giving the voters a real sense of where she wanted to take the country. and making it seemed that she thought she was entitled, and it was her time. that is a big turnoff in politics.
She also took it for granted and did not compete everywhere. You have to out hustle Trump and go everywhere – hold virtual town halls everywhere until the Corona virus threat fades away.
You have to earn the trust of the voters and can’t be seen as thinking you are entitled to the presidency because you have done your dues so to speak. That is the kiss of electoral suicide – look at Mitch Romney and Hillary Clinton – both lost because they thought that it was their time and they were entitled to the presidency, the voters simply thought otherwise and showed them the door.
And in an age where the voters were ready for a big change to the status quo, being the establishment candidate was the kiss of death. Not to mention she refused to compete everywhere. And allowed Donald Trump to paint her as “crooked Hillary” and as too much part of the establishment which the public rightly destructed so much. She could have picked Bernie Sanders as her running mate, and perhaps defeated Donald Trump. In the end she won where it did not matter and did not compete where she should have competed.
So, in this upcoming election you have to tell the voters why you are so much better for them and the country than Donald Trump. It will not be enough to run against Donald. People have to want to vote for you. Your experience counts for a lot, but it is not enough.
How to Beat Trump
talk constantly about Donald Trump being the most corrupt president in US history and that he is guilty or gross nepotism.
Finally, ignore his tweets. When he tweets something obnoxious dismiss it with the phrase “There he Goes Again”.
then talk about your bold yet pragmatic agenda over and over again.
GO BOLD OR GO HOME
The times cries out for bold progressive challenges and for fresh thinking. Make people want to vote for you as they share your vision of the possible future. and want to have a positive, can do message. Here are my suggested policy proposals.
I would put forth a series of comprehensive bold future-oriented policies and reiterate them every chance you get. You could call them Joe’s Plan for the Future of America, or Kamala’s Contract with the American People, something along those lines.
“Let’s Boldly Go into the Future,”
and rename your campaign as “Kamala for the American People” . Use one of your great assets your reputation for being an everyday person. But be big, bold, brassy, optimistic and challenge your opponents to produce a better plan or shut up and work with you to solve the nation’s problems.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent grads, they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service.
Call for The Green New Deal
Point out time and time again China, Germany, and other countries are building the green energy resources of the future while the U.S. which invented green energy is moving back to the 19th century.
When critics say we can’t afford this, tell them we can’t afford to ruin the world for our children’s future. We can’t afford to continue burning fossil fuels. Climate change is real, and the U.S. must lead the way forward. That is what great nations do, lead the world in embracing change, in embracing the promise of the future. We can do no less.
Call to Fix Obama Care
Point out time and time again that we still have a broken down too expensive too burdensome a health care system. Point out time and time again that we have the most expensive system in the world, yet we are about 25th in terms of health care outcomes. No one in this land should fear going bankrupt if they need to get medical care. We can do this right and we must do it right.
I would acknowledge that Obama Care is not perfect and that if you had a chance to re-do it you would make it much less bureaucratic and less burdensome. But be proud of what the Democrats accomplished. Promise to fix it and make it work.
One potential fix would be to open the Federal Health Care system to anyone who needs insurance and continue to provide subsidies to keep the premiums down.
Another option would be an expansion of Medicare, so it covers about half the country.
And enact permanent paid sick leave up to a month for all companies employing more than ten people.
When Republicans proclaim that they will repeal Obamacare and replace it with something, call them on their bullshit. Demand to know the plan now or tell them to shut up and work with you to fix Obamacare.
call for a slight reduction of military spending and national security spending to beef up health care spending and universal education access.
Call to repair our alliances
Declare that our allies are our allies and our friends, and we will work with them to solve the world’s problems and restore American leadership. We will rejoin the Paris Climate Change and work to make sure it works. We will rejoin the Transpacific Partnership. and we will figure out how to work with China and even Russia to solve problems of mutual interest such as climate change. Vow to restore partnership with Mexico and Canada and Latin America as well as India and Southeast Asia. and restore ties with Europe as well. Rebuild the UN and international organizations. And join the international criminal court. Finally close Gitmo as an affront to the American system of justice and human rights. Re Israel vow to work with Palestinians and Israelis alike to restart the peace process.
Offer a New Deal to North Korea
We will continue to negotiate with the North Koreans, offering them a way towards reunification with South Korea and rejoining the world economic community. You can damn the former President here with faint praise. Say that it was good that he took the initiative to break the log jam and talk to the North, but due to his inexperience and his naivety he was unable to make a deal as the North Koreans played him. You can finish the job.
Offer to Talk with The Iranians
Tell the Iranians we are ready to talk with them and want a new deal that would benefit them and the U.S. along the lines of what we are offering the North Koreans.
Bring the Troops Home
I would call for some U.S. troops to return to the U.S., where they will be reposted along our borders and serve as adjunct border patrol agents and first responders as part of their mandatory new national service.
Rebuild America
I would gradually reduce military spending and devote resources to rebuilding America’s crumbling infrastructure. This must include high-speed trains, and must include perhaps hyper-loop technology or Maglev trains? And the next generation of airplanes as well. We must rebuild our mass transit systems. We must embrace the development of driverless vehicles. and as mention we must beef up health care spending and assure universal access to higher education. These must be the new national priorities. I would throw the republicans a bone offers to look at modest reductions in other government spending for example decreasing spending on NPR but not eliminating it, and a slight decrease in foreign assistance, and UN contributions etc. and other government programs could be trimmed down a bit to pay for higher priorities.
Challenge the Republicans on their “you are weakening national security” BS. When the Republican scream you are weakening national security call them out on their BS.
Ask them how repositioning troops to help deal with national security issues at home weakens national security? How does going to universal military service weaken national security? How does getting out of endless wars weaken national security? How does closing a few bases in Europe weaken national security? Or closing a golf course? Or a commissary? Point out that we already spend more on national security than any other nation on earth. How does rebuilding America’s failed infrastructure weaken national security? How does providing medical care or universal higher education which benefits the entire nation hamper national security? Challenge them to produce a better plan.
Call for Comprehensive Immigration Reform
Start by acknowledging we need to improve security at the border, but the wall is a waste of time and money that will not solve the problem. We need a comprehensive 21st century immigration policy that balances the need for continued immigration with the need to ensure that immigrants contribute to our country and enrich our country as they always have and always will. Again throw the republicans a bone offers to ensure that E Verify is widely used by all employers and punish employers who hire illegals. I would also consider getting rid of the diversity visa program and the sibling immigration category but grandfather people in that category giving them two years to complete the immigration process with no new applicants being accepted. I would also push English language skills for immigrants as one of the new requirements – they must be able to handle the immigrant visa interview in English. That is something I agree with Trump on.
Challenge the Republicans to come up a better plan and work with you to implement it.
Call for A Return to Space Including Lunar Colonies and Martian Colonies
It is time for the U.S. to lead the world again in space exploration. Offer to lead the way in building lunar and Martian colonies with the participation of the world’s other space powers.
Call for The Legalization of Marijuana, Emptying the Prisons of Marijuana Offenders
End the endless war on drugs. Repeal marijuana prohibition. Empty the prisons of marijuana offenders. End the private prison for profit system. End the prison pipeline that sweeps up brown and black youths and sucks them into prison for life. Reserve prisons for the most dangerous offenders, all other prisoners should be sentenced to community service, drug treatment or other non-prison sentences. Use the money saved by closing prisons for rebuilding infrastructure.
Gun Control
I like your gun control proposals. It is a step forward. Continue to push for universal background checks.
Fully Support LGBT rights
Fully Support the religious freedom of all Americans including non-believers
Call for a Return to traditional American civil norms that Trump has so badly damaged
For VP Pick a centrist male governor.
I like the governor of Kentucky or North Carolina The governor of Michigan would be a good choice too. the Governor of California not so much.
To sum up, be cautious, small-minded, narrowly focused, and all about how bad Donald is, you will lose.
In any event, I believe that the time is now to call for national service in exchange for free college tuition/vocational training or grants to open small businesses. Three years of service followed by four years of either college/technical training, or assistance in opening a small business.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Dear Democratic Candidates:
I am writing to all of you and to President Trump to call for your to embrace national service in exchange for free college/technical training or assistance in opening a business.
It is time to change the game plan in Washington DC. You need a new bold proposal that will unite the country and heal the divisions. My proposal is for you to embrace mandatory national service for three years. Everyone finishing their service would receive full funding for college, technical training or a grant to set up their own business because after all not everyone needs to go to college, we need to encourage technical training and starting up small business as well.
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the key is that the service would be universal and all citizens and LPR’s between the ages of 18 and 25 would serve three years – no exceptions. Most would be military, but people could serve as fine fathers. adjust police officers, adjust border patrol officers, adjust teachers, peace corps volunteers or serve in state/local and federal government positions.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent graduates , they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service. and point out that shifting to a mandatory national service requirement would save the Pentagon money on salaries. the cost would be modest – minimum wage, housing, medical care and college tuition after their service. People would serve between age 18 and 25 one year of training and two years of service, with an optional second enlistment for three more years of educational benefits through PHD/professional degrees. Starting at age 18 until age 25 people will be randomly selected to begin service. those who are 25 will have until they turn 26 to report for service. They would have one year to report for service.
Free College/technical training or money to open a business in exchange for national service
Most people will start college, or tech training institute, then do military or other service, and then return to college to finish their college. That is fine. Ensure that colleges will not only accommodate that but will also offer college credits for military and other on the job training acquired during national service. This would also cut the cost of college attendance for most people to a manageable three years instead of four to five years. And of course, ensure that people can go to technical training institutes instead of a traditional college as we really need to grow the next generation of technical workers as well. and also ensure that those who wish financial assistance in setting up a small business would receive that assistance as well as we need to encourage the small business start ups as well.
After Service can compete to become an NCO/Officer or work for the Federal/State/Local/tribal government/ UN or NGO
After finishing basis service, those who wish to make a career of it could compete to become an NCO or an officer, and resume service after finishing college. And/or compete to enter government service for the Federal government or state and local government as well. and the service academies will only accept those who have finished basic service. This would apply to new service academies being set up, see below for more details.
All Must Serve
And most importantly, shared national service will help restore America’s sense that this is our land, this land belongs to everyone. The rich and the poor alike. We are all in this together. We have lost sight of that. The military has become an army of paid mercenaries recruited from the lower classes. If everyone serves, there will be less temptation to send troops into harms way. This will be a win- win for everyone except for the student loan vultures.
I would bring most of the troops home and station them along the southern border where they could be used to help bolster border security, and assist as first responders to natural disaster. Sell this as a real border security that will get the job done.
Establish New Service Academies for the Diplomatic, Intelligence Services/ Space Force/NASA, and law Enforcement
I would also call for four new national service academies to be set up. One would be for diplomatic and intelligence service, the other would be for law enforcement, the third would be for the Space Force/and NASA, the last would be more technical scientific agencies of the Federal government focusing on science and technology issues. These academies like the military academies including a coast guard academy, and beefing up the maritime service academy, would take only those who finished their military basis service. this would be a great way to restore our diplomatic corps and intelligence services as well as our law enforcement person. All graduates can meet their service obligation (five years post graduation) through working for Federal/State/local/tribal governments, the UN or NGO’s. all the service academies as well as the Medical Medical schools, the foreign service training center (which will be transformed into the new diplomatic/intelligence training academy) would work together on the national service academies consortium to coordinate policies and training, including post graduate training programs at the various military and other federal government training programs.
National Service Will Bring US together as one nation
I believe that this proposal could be enacted with widespread bipartisan support. It would go a long way to help heal the divisions of our country and bring us all together as a nation. I hope you will fully embrace this proposal and I look forward to discussing it with yours staff.
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Yeah, I said it. At 78-years-old, Donald is practically fossilized. You wouldn’t trust your grandpa to fix your Wi-Fi, so why let him run the country? He’s older than dirt and twice as clueless.
Like holy shit, did you see his speech at the RNC last week? The giant creep rambled on for 2 hours like he was Grandpa Simpson.
Look, the presidency is a tough gig. It needs someone with energy, someone who can stay awake past 7 PM without nodding off. Trump?
HE FALLS ASLEEP IN COURT.
He fell asleep during his own convention. He’s got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel. The only marathon he’s running is a nap marathon.
And let’s talk about the gaffes—Donald says some stupid insane shit that doesn’t make sense every single time he speaks. The only people it makes sense to are also totally delusional Christian Nationalist freaks like Marjorie Taylore Greene.
And don’t get me started on the health issues. Remember that mysterious trip to Walter Reed? Make America great again? This man can’t handle a ramp. The only thing he can make great again is the act of faceplanting into the ground.
So, here’s the divine decree: Trump, pack it up. Go home, put on your slippers, and watch Matlock reruns. Leave running the country to someone who can remember what day it is without checking Fox News. It’s time for you to drop out, you crusty old bag of assholes.
Now that I, the LORD THY GOD, have brought attention to this issue, I am sure the media will be obsessing about it every day from here on out.
Before we start: I did a YouTube thing about Biden last night, if you’re interested.
Now let’s go.
(1) The Democratic party is a healthy institution.
On the night of June 27, the various power centers within the Democratic party began a difficult conversation: Was Joe Biden still capable of running a vigorous campaign?
Over three weeks the party reached a diffuse—if not unanimous—consensus: He was not. This consensus was the product of all levels of the party: Elder statesmen such as Nancy Pelosi, elected Democrats analyzing their own future prospects, donors making decisions about spending, and the main body of public opinion among Democratic voters.
Once this consensus was reached, the various power centers began a dialogue with the party’s leader, President Biden. The party expressed its choice. Biden pushed back. The party took up the question again and, after due consideration, held firm.
Joe Biden then stepped aside for the good of the nation.
This is how healthy institutions are supposed to work.
At The Bulwark there has been a lot of drama over the last three weeks. We told you what we really thought, even though it meant making some people mad.
Our mission is to have honest and real conversations. Because that’s what healthy institutions do.
Right here, in the Bulwark community, those conversations were great. I mean, they were often painful. But they were always civil and conducted in good faith.
How special is this community? We had one member who was so disappointed in us that he cancelled his subscription and then came back to the comments every day to try to convince others to cancel their subscriptions, too. And he did it passionately, but with respect.
Where do you find people like that on the internet? It was amazing.
The coming weeks are going to be full of history. Come and ride through it with us.
2. The process which elevated Kamala Harris was sensible.
The Democratic party made another institutional decision in parallel with the Biden question: It vetted Kamala Harris.
This subroutine executed in the background, but it was active. Democratic voters began to consider her as the nominee and polling showed that they were comfortable with her. Party elders evaluated her fitness. Donors and elected Democrats took her measure. The fact that no anti-Harris groundswell—or even boom let—emerged is proof that the party decided that Harris was an acceptable nominee.
After Biden blessed Harris on Sunday afternoon, the party coalesced around her in much the way it did Biden after the New Hampshire primary in 2020.
The Democratic party will enter the election more unified than it had been pre-debate.
3. Kamala Harris can run as an insurgent, but with the advantages of an incumbent.
The largest advantage of incumbency is that a candidate does not have to take base-pleasing positions during a primary campaign that can hurt him during a general election.
Because of the extraordinary nature of her ascendence, Harris possesses this advantage. She will carry nearly every advantage of incumbency and yet she can credibly position herself as this election’s change agent.
4. Trump is holding the age bomb.
The Trump campaign spent two years creating a political bomb concerning old age. They assumed that they could plant this bomb at the feet of Joe Biden.
Trump is now the one holding the age bomb. He is not only a full generation older than Harris—everything about him looks geriatric by comparison. From his gait to his bronzed-over pallor; from the way he rambles and gets lost in sentences to his inability to keep facts straight.
Every split screen now makes Trump look old and decrepit by comparison.
That’s more money than any Democrat has ever raised in a single day. It’s twice as much as Trump raised following his felony conviction. If this doesn’t snap your head back, it should.
Because it’s as good a proxy as you’ll find for excitement.
It will be several days until we have polling with a more detailed view of Harris’s support from Democratic voters, but it is already clear that she will perform much better than Biden has within her party.
Here’s my advice: You should be open to the idea that Harris could ride a wave of excitement and passion that absolutely no one was seeing until Biden stepped aside. I’m talking Obama ‘08-levels of energy.
It’s not a given. But it’s in the realm of the possible. Keep your eyes peeled for it.
At the debate, Donald Trump also demonstrated (again) that he is unfit for office. He rambled and lied incoherently. He is a convicted felon. A jury found him guilty of sexual assault. He has said he wants to be a “dictator” and that he wants to “terminate” parts of the Constitution. He selected as his running mate a man who advised disobeying orders from the Supreme Court and forcing a constitutional crisis.
Until last week there was nothing stopping the Republican party from forcing Trump off the ticket. The party elders and elected officials could have demanded that Trump step aside. Republican voters could have said that they had no confidence in his ability to govern. Donors could have closed their wallets.
But the plain fact is that not one single Republican called on Trump to step aside.
Not one.
Why? Because the various precincts of the Republican party understand that they hold no power—at all—over Trump. They could not ask him to withdraw from the race. Even broaching the subject would be grounds for excommunication from the party.
The Democratic party is a functioning institution, with checks and balances; constituencies and power structures. Like any institution, it is amorphous and its decision making is mostly organic.
The Republican party is an autocracy where the only thing that matters is the will of the leader. All power flows through him. All decisions are made by him. There are no competing power centers—only vassal states overseen by his noblemen.
One of the reasons the last three weeks have been so difficult is because Democrats were not choosing between a “good” outcome and a “bad” outcome.
Those sorts of choices are easy.
Instead, Democrats were tasked with deciding between least-bad options. Humans rebel against the idea of “least-bad.” When faced with choices, we want to believe that at least one of them is “good.”
When the first real Harris-vs.-Trump polling comes out next week we’ll see how big of a hole she’s in. But unlike Biden, Harris has the ability to spend the next three months on offense, all day, every day. If she can deliver the goods, she has a puncher’s chance.
A slight push-back against those who believe Biden took too long to step aside:
It was three and a half weeks from the debate to Biden pulling out. That’s it.
Joe Biden is the president, but he’s also just a man. Coming to a decision like this one—an unprecedented decision—is hard. There’s a lot to weigh and there’s a tremendous responsibility to get it right.
My own view is that Biden made the call basically as quickly as possible. He couldn’t have done it the week of the NATO summit. Then Trump was shot in the ear. Then there was the Republican convention. To my mind, Biden’s timing on this was optimal, actually.
Nothing about Joe Biden’s presidency was inevitable. Not his candidacy. Not his victory over Trump. Not his withdrawal from reelection.
At nearly every turn, Biden did the right thing for America.
His legacy is assured. He will be remembered as one of the great modern presidents.
I said this last night and I’ll say it again. History had its eye on Joe Biden, and he met the moment. He did his part. Now it’s up to Kamala Harris and us to do ours.
In the coming weeks we will find out if the people who said, “I hate Trump, but Biden is too old” really meant it.
Will they find some new excuse for why they have to vote for Trump? Will they become unconcerned about the risks of old age and cognitive decline in a president?
I’m not talking about partisan public personalities on Twitter. I’m talking about swing voters: The kind of Trump-to-Biden voters who have been backsliding in Trump’s direction.
Sarah’s focus groups are going to be absolutely vital for understanding how this group thinks. Don’t miss them.
for about an hour after Biden’s announcement, I ran around with my hair on fire. I’d just spent a month warning everyone about the chaos that Biden dropping out would bring — infighting, battles over fundraising, lawsuits, atonal music, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together — mass hysteria.
and then a thing happened that I absolutely did not see coming: just about the entire Democratic establishment immediately threw their support behind Kamala Harris.
Mr. Biden endorsed Ms. Harris within minutes on Sunday afternoon. Before she had uttered a word about her intentions, he was swiftly followed by other party leaders, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, key Democratic senators and influential House members. By the evening, Mr. Shapiro had publicly backed Ms. Harris after a phone call from her. She also picked up endorsements from Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, Mr. Cooper and Mr. Kelly.
A coalition of former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley voters pledged their support for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid on Sunday, hours after President Joe Biden announced that he was dropping out of the race.
Joe Biden remains a master at doing politics. Dark Brandon dark-Brandon the shit out of his passing of the torch. clearly, this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision. Joe had to have worked behind the scenes to shore up this much immediate support for Kamala. he made sure not one word of any this leaked. he timed the announcement of his decision so that Donny and the Republicans spent the entire convention running against the wrong candidate. and the pièce de résistance —
Sending out a press release on Sunday afternoon, after the morning talk shows, totally screwed the media. No video clips, no “breaking news,” no chance for pundits to comment on how he sounded, looked, walked, etc. No chance to schedule guests to pick him apart as he spoke. He totally starved them of clicks and eyeballs, in repayment for them starving his candidacy of positive coverage purely for the sake of clicks and eyeballs.
look, I didn’t want any of this to happen. Biden was my guy, and I was prepared to back Joe all the way to November and beyond. but, that said, I have to admit that last night I slept better than I have any time in the last month.
now let’s turn our attention to all the people who need to fuck all the way off.
Stelter spent a month screaming that JOE MUST GO — but now that he’s gotten what he wanted, he’s moved the goalposts to JOE MUST GO BUT NOT LIKE THIS. some people are just never happy.
“some” is doing a fuck-ton of heavy lifting here. are these “some” black voters in the room with us right now?
note to Times nepo-publisher Arthur Gregg Sulzberger: it doesn’t matter how hard you suck up to Donny, he’s not going to make the Times his official state media if he takes power. stop trying.
in fact, all the nitwits still rooting for their own personal fantasy ticket can fuck off.
how many times does Michelle Obama need to state that she has no interest in running for office? you’re wasting everyone’s time with this mental masturbation. do it in private.
we all knew that the Republicans were immediately going to pivot to “now Joe Biden must resign” — but these clowns are not thinking this through. first of all, Joe quitting is a big bowl of never gonna happen. second, does the GOP really want to spend the next three months running against President Kamala Harris?
now this is awesome: the Republican Party just realized that they’re no longer running against icky old Joe Biden who smells bad and is too demented to realize that he died six months ago. they created this whole fiction about Joe Biden and now they can’t use any of it — and they’re freaking the fuck out.
“they held a primary! people, they had ballots! they filled out circles! they went to the voting booths! they spent money on advertisements! and as president Trump, said the Republican Party spent tens of millions of dollars running against Joe Biden! now they just woke up one morning and said never mind, we’re canceling the entire primary, we’re getting rid of our candidate and pretending the election just never even happened and let donors hand-pick a new nominee?”
it’s not fair! how dare the Democrats come together around a young and vibrant candidate, leaving our guy to be the old fart in the race.
boo fucking hoo, you grievance-babies. you demanded this happen, and now you’re whining about it. shut the fuck up and dry your eyes. here’s your binky.
as Stephen Miller noted in his crybaby rant, Donny Convict is hopping mad. he’s demanding to speak to Sleepy Brandon’s manager because he wants his money back.
So, we are forced to spend time and money on fighting Crooked Joe Biden, he polls badly after having a terrible debate, and quits the race. Now we have to start all over again. Shouldn’t the Republican Party be reimbursed for fraud in that everybody around Joe, including his doctors and the Fake News Media, knew he was not capable of running for, or being, President? Just askin’?
it’s the prosecutor versus the felon. I’ll take that.
…Substack
JAKECOSMOSALLER.SUBSTACK.COM
My Thoughts On the Harris For President
My Thoughts on the Harris Candidacy. https://wp.me/p7NAzO-2Zb Health Care Reforms For Joe and Kamala Joe, Go Bold or Go Home – revisedThanks for reading jake’s Newsletter! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. Joe, Either Go Bold or Retire!
I still believe in her and in the basic goodness of the American people. I believe that the people will choose goodness over evil, love over hate, and progress over going back. When faced with the choice – a demented, deranged senile old man filled with hatred and revenge, or a competent accomplished woman they will make the right choice.
Congratulations, my Berkeley hometown girl. You got this girl.
Go Bold or go Home!
Berkeley Girl Makes It
The news
that Biden
was stepping down
throwing his support.
for Kamala Harris
as President.
filled me with joy
and anticipation.
Kamala Harris
attended my elementary school
Thousand Oaks in Berkeley
a few years before me.
and is a Berkeley girl
through and through.
Go Berkely !
Thousand Oak Girl I say.
T.O Toughie Girl Power.
the first Female VP
of Asian descent
the first VP
of black descent
the first Caribbean
to be on the ticket.
and the first Hindu
as well.
and the first
Berkeley native
on the ticket.
it is time
for Berkeley to rule
in my humble opinion.
Kamala
here’s what I would campaign on.
I retired from the U.S. State Department in 2016 after 27 years of service. I grew up in Berkeley (attended Thousand Oaks school a few years before you did, went to college at the University of the Pacific and graduated from the University of Washington (MA Korean Studies, MPA). I also served in the Peace Corps in Korea, and served 27 years in the Foreign Service serving in ten countries. I have been to all 50 States and 50 countries.
the theme would be getting stuff done for the people!
Reforming the Federal Budget
This is perhaps boring to voters but very important to the long-term stability of the country.
I would call upon Congress to change how they do budgets and shift to a two-year budgetary cycle. The first year of Congress would be devoted to passing the two-year budget, the second year would be devoted to oversight and supplemental budget requests.
Coupled that shifting to a calendar year budget. Eliminate the possibility of government shutdowns by enacting automatic CR’s if budgets are not passed on time. But also require budgets to be passed on time – December 1 in the prior year. If a budget is not passed on time, keep congress in town until the budget is passed. And if for some reason the budget is not passed, dinge congressional salaries until the budget is passed.
Second commission a study to look at our tax situation and make suggestions for common sense tax reform. Start by figuring out how much money the government spends in a given year, the reform of the tax code to generate most of the revenue from taxes. Consider a national sales tax as well. Reserve borrowing for large scale infrastructure, and military spending. And consider a surcharge on income of about 25 million per year.
I would also look at federal spending and ask that all departments identify lower priority projects with a required 5% reduction in federal spending per agency over a four-year period, except for health related and education related agencies which would be given a considerable bump up in spending. I would do this for three years so that in three years overall spending has been reduced by about 10 percent. Leave it up to the agencies to identify lower priority projects that should not be micromanaged by the White House.
For the defense department consider eliminating such things as golf courses, domestic PX and commissary stores and other non-essential spending.
Finally consider turning over some federal government functions to the states. The conservative idea of moving federal agencies out of Washington DC has considerable merit in my opinion.
My advice, in a nutshell, is to make this a campaign about the future and your vision of the future. Paint your opponent Donald Trump as yesterday’s candidate, and mock him, calling on Grandpa Trump to retire to Florida and play golf. Depict him as senile, out of touch, corrupt and focused on returning America to the 19th Century. And call for progressive bold new ideas for the future of America. Be optimistic, be full of hope and goodwill. Freely steal from Bernie and Elizabeth’s proposals and adopt her detailed plans – after talking with her of course. Call for reform not revolution and stress competence vs. incompetence and chaos.
Hillary’s biggest mistake was in my view making it all about how bad Donald Trump is, and not giving the voters a real sense of where she wanted to take the country. and making it seemed that she thought she was entitled, and it was her time. that is a big turnoff in politics.
She also took it for granted and did not compete everywhere. You have to out hustle Trump and go everywhere – hold virtual town halls everywhere until the Corona virus threat fades away.
You have to earn the trust of the voters and can’t be seen as thinking you are entitled to the presidency because you have done your dues so to speak. That is the kiss of electoral suicide – look at Mitch Romney and Hillary Clinton – both lost because they thought that it was their time and they were entitled to the presidency, the voters simply thought otherwise and showed them the door.
And in an age where the voters were ready for a big change to the status quo, being the establishment candidate was the kiss of death. Not to mention she refused to compete everywhere. And allowed Donald Trump to paint her as “crooked Hillary” and as too much part of the establishment which the public rightly destructed so much. She could have picked Bernie Sanders as her running mate, and perhaps defeated Donald Trump. In the end she won where it did not matter and did not compete where she should have competed.
So, in this upcoming election you have to tell the voters why you are so much better for them and the country than Donald Trump. It will not be enough to run against Donald. People have to want to vote for you. Your experience counts for a lot, but it is not enough.
How to Beat Trump
talk constantly about Donald Trump being the most corrupt president in US history and that he is guilty or gross nepotism. Call him Conman Don, for felon Con, or despicable me wanna be Don.
Finally, ignore his tweets. When he tweets something obnoxious dismiss it with the phrase “There he Goes Again”.
then talk about your bold yet pragmatic agenda over and over again. Remember the best way to handle a bully is to mock them over and over again. They can’t handle that and he will become more unhinged and dangerous as you mock him. So Mock him, girl. He deserves it. and in the debate call him on his BS brutally fact check his ass live on TV. Show the world what an ignorant senile old man he has become.
GO BOLD OR GO HOME
The times cries out for bold progressive challenges and for fresh thinking. Make people want to vote for you as they share your vision of the possible future. and want to have a positive, can-do message. Here are my suggested policy proposals.
I would put forth a series of comprehensive bold future-oriented policies and reiterate them every chance you get. You could call them Joe’s Plan for the Future of America, or Kamala’s Contract with the American People, something along those lines.
“Let’s Boldly Go into the Future,”
and rename your campaign as “Kamala for the American People” . Use one of your great assets your reputation for being an everyday person. But be big, bold, brassy, optimistic and challenge your opponents to produce a better plan or shut up and work with you to solve the nation’s problems.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent grads, they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service.
Call for The Green New Deal
Point out time and time again China, Germany, and other countries are building the green energy resources of the future while the U.S. which invented green energy is moving back to the 19th century.
When critics say we can’t afford this, tell them we can’t afford to ruin the world for our children’s future. We can’t afford to continue burning fossil fuels. Climate change is real, and the U.S. must lead the way forward. That is what great nations do, lead the world in embracing change, in embracing the promise of the future. We can do no less.
Call to Fix Obama Care
Point out time and time again that we still have a broken down too expensive too burdensome a health care system. Point out time and time again that we have the most expensive system in the world, yet we are about 25th in terms of health care outcomes. No one in this land should fear going bankrupt if they need to get medical care. We can do this right and we must do it right.
I would acknowledge that Obama Care is not perfect and that if you had a chance to re-do it you would make it much less bureaucratic and less burdensome. But be proud of what the Democrats accomplished. Promise to fix it and make it work.
One potential fix would be to open the Federal Health Care system to anyone who needs insurance and continue to provide subsidies to keep the premiums down.
Another option would be an expansion of Medicare, so it covers about half the country.
And enact permanent paid sick leave up to a month for all companies employing more than ten people.
When Republicans proclaim that they will repeal Obamacare and replace it with something, call them on their bullshit. Demand to know the plan now or tell them to shut up and work with you to fix Obamacare.
call for a slight reduction of military spending and national security spending to beef up health care spending and universal education access.
Call to repair our alliances
Declare that our allies are our allies and our friends, and we will work with them to solve the world’s problems and restore American leadership. We will rejoin the Paris Climate Change and work to make sure it works. We will rejoin the Transpacific Partnership. and we will figure out how to work with China and even Russia to solve problems of mutual interest such as climate change. Vow to restore partnership with Mexico and Canada and Latin America as well as India and Southeast Asia. and restore ties with Europe as well. Rebuild the UN and international organizations. And join the international criminal court. Finally close Gitmo as an affront to the American system of justice and human rights. Re Israel vow to work with Palestinians and Israelis alike to restart the peace process.
Offer a New Deal to North Korea
We will continue to negotiate with the North Koreans, offering them a way towards reunification with South Korea and rejoining the world economic community. You can damn the former President here with faint praise. Say that it was good that he took the initiative to break the log jam and talk to the North, but due to his inexperience and his naivety he was unable to make a deal as the North Koreans played him. You can finish the job.
Offer to Talk with The Iranians
Tell the Iranians we are ready to talk with them and want a new deal that would benefit them and the U.S. along the lines of what we are offering the North Koreans.
Bring the Troops Home
I would call for some U.S. troops to return to the U.S., where they will be reposted along our borders and serve as adjunct border patrol agents and first responders as part of their mandatory new national service.
Rebuild America
I would gradually reduce military spending and devote resources to rebuilding America’s crumbling infrastructure. This must include high-speed trains, and must include perhaps hyper-loop technology or Maglev trains? And the next generation of airplanes as well. We must rebuild our mass transit systems. We must embrace the development of driverless vehicles. and as mentioned we must beef up health care spending and assure universal access to higher education. These must be the new national priorities. I would throw the republicans a bone offers to look at modest reductions in other government spending for example decreasing spending on NPR but not eliminating it, and a slight decrease in foreign assistance, and UN contributions etc. and other government programs could be trimmed down a bit to pay for higher priorities.
Challenge the Republicans on their “you are weakening national security” BS. When the Republican scream you are weakening national security call them out on their BS.
Ask them how repositioning troops to help deal with national security issues at home weakens national security? How does going to universal military service weaken national security? How does getting out of endless wars weaken national security? How does closing a few bases in Europe weaken national security? Or closing a golf course? Or a commissary? Point out that we already spend more on national security than any other nation on earth. How does rebuilding America’s failed infrastructure weaken national security? How does providing medical care or universal higher education which benefits the entire nation hamper national security? Challenge them to produce a better plan.
Call for Comprehensive Immigration Reform
Start by acknowledging we need to improve security at the border, but the wall is a waste of time and money that will not solve the problem. We need a comprehensive 21st century immigration policy that balances the need for continued immigration with the need to ensure that immigrants contribute to our country and enrich our country as they always have and always will. Again throw the republicans a bone offers to ensure that E Verify is widely used by all employers and punish employers who hire illegals. I would also consider getting rid of the diversity visa program and the sibling immigration category but grandfather people in that category giving them two years to complete the immigration process with no new applicants being accepted. I would also push English language skills for immigrants as one of the new requirements – they must be able to handle the immigrant visa interview in English. That is something I agree with Trump on.
Challenge the Republicans to come up a better plan and work with you to implement it.
Call for A Return to Space Including Lunar Colonies and Martian Colonies
It is time for the U.S. to lead the world again in space exploration. Offer to lead the way in building lunar and Martian colonies with the participation of the world’s other space powers.
Call for The Legalization of Marijuana, Emptying the Prisons of Marijuana Offenders
End the endless war on drugs. Repeal marijuana prohibition. Empty the prisons of marijuana offenders. End the private prison for profit system. End the prison pipeline that sweeps up brown and black youths and sucks them into prison for life. Reserve prisons for the most dangerous offenders, all other prisoners should be sentenced to community service, drug treatment or other non-prison sentences. Use the money saved by closing prisons for rebuilding infrastructure.
Gun Control
I like your gun control proposals. It is a step forward. Continue to push for universal background checks.
Fully Support LGBT rights
Fully Support the religious freedom of all Americans including non-believers. Call to re-ignite Roe V Wade standards.
Call for a Return to traditional American civil norms that Trump has so badly damaged
call for reforming the Supreme Court. Including nominating the first hispanic member.
For VP Pick a centrist male governor.
I like the governor of Kentucky or North Carolina The governor of Michigan would be a good choice too. the Governor of California not so much.
To sum up, be cautious, small-minded, narrowly focused, and all about how bad Donald is, you will lose.
In any event, I believe that the time is now to call for national service in exchange for free college tuition/vocational training or grants to open small businesses. Three years of service followed by four years of either college/technical training, or assistance in opening a small business.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Dear Democratic Candidates:
I am writing to all of you and to President Trump to call for your to embrace national service in exchange for free college/technical training or assistance in opening a business.
It is time to change the game plan in Washington DC. You need a new bold proposal that will unite the country and heal the divisions. My proposal is for you to embrace mandatory national service for three years. Everyone finishing their service would receive full funding for college, technical training or a grant to set up their own business because after all not everyone needs to go to college, we need to encourage technical training and starting up small business as well.
the key is that the service would be universal and all citizens and LPR’s between the ages of 18 and 25 would serve three years – no exceptions. Most would be military, but people could serve as fine fathers. adjust police officers, adjust border patrol officers, adjust teachers, peace corps volunteers or serve in state/local and federal government positions.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent graduates , they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service. and point out that shifting to a mandatory national service requirement would save the Pentagon money on salaries. the cost would be modest – minimum wage, housing, medical care and college tuition after their service. People would serve between age 18 and 25 one year of training and two years of service, with an optional second enlistment for three more years of educational benefits through PHD/professional degrees. Starting at age 18 until age 25 people will be randomly selected to begin service. those who are 25 will have until they turn 26 to report for service. They would have one year to report for service.
Free College/Technical Training or Money to Open a Business in Exchange for National Service
Most people will start college, or tech training institute, then do military or other service, and then return to college to finish their college. That is fine. Ensure that colleges will not only accommodate that but will also offer college credits for military and other on -the-job training acquired during national service. This would also cut the cost of college attendance for most people to a manageable three years instead of four to five years. And of course, ensure that people can go to technical training institutes instead of a traditional college as we really ,need to grow the next generation of technical workers as well. and also ensure that those who wish financial assistance in setting up a small business would receive that assistance as well as we need to encourage the small business start-ups as well.
After Service can compete to become an NCO/Officer or work for the Federal/State/Local/tribal government/ UN or NGO
After finishing basic service, those who wish to make a career of it could compete to become an NCO or an officer and resume service after finishing college. And/or compete to enter government service for the Federal government or state and local government as well. The service academies will only accept those who have finished basic service. This would apply to new service academies being set up, see below for more details.
All Must Serve
And most importantly, shared national service will help restore America’s sense that this is our land, this land belongs to everyone. The rich and the poor alike. We are all in this together. We have lost sight of that. The military has become an army of paid mercenaries recruited from the lower classes. If everyone serves, there will be less temptation to send troops into harm’s way. This will be a win- win for everyone except for the student loan vultures.
I would bring most of the troops home and station them along the southern border where they could be used to help bolster border security, and assist as first responders to natural disaster. Sell this as real border security that will get the job done.
Establish New Service Academies for the Diplomatic, Intelligence Services/ Space Force/NASA, and law Enforcement
I would also call for four new national service academies to be set up. One would be for diplomatic and intelligence service, the other would be for law enforcement, the third would be for the Space Force/and NASA, the last would be more technical scientific agencies of the Federal government focusing on science and technology issues. These academies, like the military academies including a coast guard academy, and beefing up the maritime service academy, would take only those who finished their military basis service. this would be a great way to restore our diplomatic corps and intelligence services as well as our law enforcement person. All graduates can meet their service obligation (five years post graduation) through working for Federal/State/local/tribal governments, the UN or NGO’s. all the service academies as well as the Medical Medical schools, the foreign service training center (which will be transformed into the new diplomatic/intelligence training academy) would work together on the national service academies consortium to coordinate policies and training, including postgraduate training programs at the various military and other federal government training programs.
National Service Will Bring US together as one nation
I believe that this proposal could be enacted with widespread bipartisan support. It would go a long way to help heal the divisions of our country and bring us all together as a nation. I hope you will fully embrace this proposal and I look forward to discussing it with your staff.
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God here. Now that President Biden has heroically passed the torch to Kamala Harris, can we talk about the orange elephant in the room?
TRUMP MUST DROP OUT BECAUSE HE’S OLD AS FUCK.
Yeah, I said it. At 78-years-old, Donald is practically fossilized. You wouldn’t trust your grandpa to fix your Wi-Fi, so why let him run the country? He’s older than dirt and twice as clueless.
Like holy shit, did you see his speech at the RNC last week? The giant creep rambled on for 2 hours like he was Grandpa Simpson.
Look, the presidency is a tough gig. It needs someone with energy, someone who can stay awake past 7 PM without nodding off. Trump?
HE FALLS ASLEEP IN THE COURT.
He fell asleep during his own convention. He’s got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel. The only marathon he’s running is a nap marathon.
And let’s talk about the gaffes—Donald says some stupid insane shit that doesn’t make sense every single time he speaks. The only people it makes sense to are also totally delusional Christian Nationalist freaks like Marjorie Taylore Greene.
And don’t get me started on the health issues. Remember that mysterious trip to Walter Reed? Make America great again? This man can’t handle a ramp. The only thing he can make great again is the act of face planting into the ground.
So, here’s the divine decree: Trump, pack it up. Go home, put on your slippers, and watch Matlock reruns. Leave running the country to someone who can remember what day it is without checking Fox News. It’s time for you to drop out, you crusty old bag of assholes.
Now that I, the LORD THY GOD, have brought attention to this issue, I am sure the media will be obsessing about it every day from here on out.
Before we start: I did a YouTube thing about Biden last night, if you’re interested.
Now let’s go.
(1) The Democratic party is a healthy institution.
On the night of June 27, the various power centers within the Democratic party began a difficult conversation: Was Joe Biden still capable of running a vigorous campaign?
Over three weeks the party reached a diffuse—if not unanimous—consensus: He was not. This consensus was the product of all levels of the party: Elder statesmen such as Nancy Pelosi, elected Democrats analyzing their own future prospects, donors making decisions about spending, and the main body of public opinion among Democratic voters.
Once this consensus was reached, the various power centers began a dialogue with the party’s leader, President Biden. The party expressed its choice. Biden pushed back. The party took up the question again and, after due consideration, held firm.
Joe Biden then stepped aside for the good of the nation.
This is how healthy institutions are supposed to work.
At The Bulwark there has been a lot of drama over the last three weeks. We told you what we really thought, even though it meant making some people mad.
Our mission is to have honest and real conversations. Because that’s what healthy institutions do.
Right here, in the Bulwark community, those conversations were great. I mean, they were often painful. But they were always civil and conducted in good faith.
How special is this community? We had one member who was so disappointed in us that he cancelled his subscription and then came back to the comments every day to try to convince others to cancel their subscriptions, too. And he did it passionately, but with respect.
Where do you find people like that on the internet? It was amazing.
The coming weeks are going to be full of history. Come and ride through it with us.
J The process which elevated Kamala Harris was sensible.
The Democratic party made another institutional decision in parallel with the Biden question: It vetted Kamala Harris.
This subroutine executed in the background, but it was active. Democratic voters began to consider her as the nominee and polling showed that they were comfortable with her. Party elders evaluated her fitness. Donors and elected Democrats took her measure. The fact that no anti-Harris groundswell—or even boom let—emerged is proof that the party decided that Harris was an acceptable nominee.
After Biden blessed Harris on Sunday afternoon, the party coalesced around her in much the way it did Biden after the New Hampshire primary in 2020.
The Democratic party will enter the election more unified than it had been pre-debate.
3. Kamala Harris can run as an insurgent, but with the advantages of an incumbent.
The largest advantage of incumbency is that a candidate does not have to take base-pleasing positions during a primary campaign that can hurt him during a general election.
Because of the extraordinary nature of her ascendence, Harris possesses this advantage. She will carry nearly every advantage of incumbency and yet she can credibly position herself as this election’s change agent.
4. Trump is holding the age bomb.
The Trump campaign spent two years creating a political bomb concerning old age. They assumed that they could plant this bomb at the feet of Joe Biden.
Trump is now the one holding the age bomb. He is not only a full generation older than Harris—everything about him looks geriatric by comparison. From his gait to his bronzed-over pallor; from the way he rambles and gets lost in sentences to his inability to keep facts straight.
Every split screen now makes Trump look old and decrepit by comparison.
5. There was enormous pent-up demand among Democrats for a younger leader.
That’s more money than any Democrat has ever raised in a single day. It’s twice as much as Trump raised following his felony conviction. If this doesn’t snap your head back, it should.
Because it’s as good a proxy as you’ll find for excitement.
It will be several days until we have polling with a more detailed view of Harris’s support from Democratic voters, but it is already clear that she will perform much better than Biden has within her party.
Here’s my advice: You should be open to the idea that Harris could ride a wave of excitement and passion that absolutely no one was seeing until Biden stepped aside. I’m talking Obama ‘08-levels of energy.
It’s not a given. But it’s in the realm of the possible. Keep your eyes peeled for it.
6. The Republican party is a failed state.
At the debate, Donald Trump also demonstrated (again) that he is unfit for office. He rambled and lied incoherently. He is a convicted felon. A jury found him guilty of sexual assault. He has said he wants to be a “dictator” and that he wants to “terminate” parts of the Constitution. He selected as his running mate a man who advised disobeying orders from the Supreme Court and forcing a constitutional crisis.
Until last week there was nothing stopping the Republican party from forcing Trump off the ticket. The party elders and elected officials could have demanded that Trump step aside. Republican voters could have said that they had no confidence in his ability to govern. Donors could have closed their wallets.
But the plain fact is that not one single Republican called on Trump to step aside.
Not one.
Why? Because the various precincts of the Republican party understand that they hold no power—at all—over Trump. They could not ask him to withdraw from the race. Even broaching the subject would be grounds for excommunication from the party.
The Democratic party is a functioning institution, with checks and balances, constituencies and power structures. Like any institution, it is amorphous and its decision making is mostly organic.
The Republican party is an autocracy where the only thing that matters is the will of the leader. All power flows through him. All decisions are made by him. There are no competing power centers—only vassal states overseen by his noblemen.
7. Harris is an underdog.
One of the reasons the last three weeks have been so difficult is because Democrats were not choosing between a “good” outcome and a “bad” outcome.
Those sorts of choices are easy.
Instead, Democrats were tasked with deciding between least-bad options. Humans rebel against the idea of “least-bad.” When faced with choices, we want to believe that at least one of them is “good.”
When the first real Harris-vs.-Trump polling comes out next week we’ll see how big of a hole she’s in. But unlike Biden, Harris has the ability to spend the next three months on offense, all day, every day. If she can deliver the goods, she has a puncher’s chance.
2. In Praise of Biden
A slight push-back against those who believe Biden took too long to step aside:
It was three and a half weeks from the debate to Biden pulling out. That’s it.
Joe Biden is the president, but he’s also just a man. Coming to a decision like this one—an unprecedented decision—is hard. There’s a lot to weigh and there’s a tremendous responsibility to get it right.
My own view is that Biden made the call basically as quickly as possible. He couldn’t have done it the week of the NATO summit. Then Trump was shot in the ear. Then there was the Republican convention. To my mind, Biden’s timing on this was optimal, actually.
Nothing about Joe Biden’s presidency was inevitable. Not his candidacy. Not his victory over Trump. Not his withdrawal from reelection.
At nearly every turn, Biden did the right thing for America.
His legacy is assured. He will be remembered as one of the great modern presidents.
I said this last night and I’ll say it again. History had its eye on Joe Biden, and he met the moment. He did his part. Now it’s up to Kamala Harris and us to do ours.
In the coming weeks we will find out if the people who said, “I hate Trump, but Biden is too old” really meant it.
Will they find some new excuse for why they have to vote for Trump? Will they become unconcerned about the risks of old age and cognitive decline in a president?
I’m not talking about partisan public personalities on Twitter. I’m talking about swing voters: The kind of Trump-to-Biden voters who have been backsliding in Trump’s direction.
Sarah’s focus groups are going to be absolutely vital for understanding how this group thinks. Don’t miss them.
for about an hour after Biden’s announcement, I ran around with my hair on fire. I’d just spent a month warning everyone about the chaos that Biden dropping out would bring — infighting, battles over fundraising, lawsuits, atonal music, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together — mass hysteria.
and then a thing happened that I absolutely did not see coming: just about the entire Democratic establishment immediately threw their support behind Kamala Harris.
Mr. Biden endorsed Ms. Harris within minutes on Sunday afternoon. Before she had uttered a word about her intentions, he was swiftly followed by other party leaders, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, key Democratic senators and influential House members. By the evening, Mr. Shapiro had publicly backed Ms. Harris after a phone call from her. She also picked up endorsements from Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, Mr. Cooper and Mr. Kelly.
A coalition of former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley voters pledged their support for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid on Sunday, hours after President Joe Biden announced that he was dropping out of the race.
Joe Biden remains a master at doing politics. Dark Brandon dark-Brandon the shit out of his passing of the torch. clearly, this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision. Joe had to have worked behind the scenes to shore up this much immediate support for Kamala. he made sure not one word of any this leaked. he timed the announcement of his decision so that Donny and the Republicans spent the entire convention running against the wrong candidate. and the pièce de résistance —
Sending out a press release on Sunday afternoon, after the morning talk shows, totally screwed the media. No video clips, no “breaking news,” no chance for pundits to comment on how he sounded, looked, walked, etc. No chance to schedule guests to pick him apart as he spoke. He totally starved them of clicks and eyeballs, in repayment for them starving his candidacy of positive coverage purely for the sake of clicks and eyeballs.
look, I didn’t want any of this to happen. Biden was my guy, and I was prepared to back Joe all the way to November and beyond. but, that said, I have to admit that last night I slept better than I have any time in the last month.
now let’s turn our attention to all the people who need to fuck all the way off.
Stelter spent a month screaming that JOE MUST GO — but now that he’s gotten what he wanted, he’s moved the goalposts to JOE MUST GO BUT NOT LIKE THIS. some people are just never happy.
“some” is doing a fuck-ton of heavy lifting here. are these “some” black voters in the room with us right now?
note to Times nepo-publisher Arthur Gregg Sulzberger: it doesn’t matter how hard you suck up to Donny, he’s not going to make the Times his official state media if he takes power. stop trying.
in fact, all the nitwits still rooting for their own personal fantasy ticket can fuck off.
how many times does Michelle Obama need to state that she has no interest in running for office? you’re wasting everyone’s time with this mental masturbation. do it in private.
we all knew that the Republicans were immediately going to pivot to “now Joe Biden must resign” — but these clowns are not thinking this through. first of all, Joe quitting is a big bowl of never gonna happen. second, does the GOP really want to spend the next three months running against President Kamala Harris?
now this is awesome: the Republican Party just realized that they’re no longer running against icky old Joe Biden who smells bad and is too demented to realize that he died six months ago. they created this whole fiction about Joe Biden and now they can’t use any of it — and they’re freaking the fuck out.
“they held a primary! people, they had ballots! they filled out circles! they went to the voting booths! they spent money on advertisements! and as president Trump, said the Republican Party spent tens of millions of dollars running against Joe Biden! now they just woke up one morning and said never mind, we’re canceling the entire primary, we’re getting rid of our candidate and pretending the election just never even happened and let donors hand-pick a new nominee?”
it’s not fair! how dare the Democrats come together around a young and vibrant candidate, leaving our guy to be the old fart in the race.
boo fucking hoo, you grievance-babies. you demanded this happen, and now you’re whining about it. shut the fuck up and dry your eyes. here’s your binky.
as Stephen Miller noted in his crybaby rant, Donny Convict is hopping mad. he’s demanding to speak to Sleepy Brandon’s manager because he wants his money back.
So, we are forced to spend time and money on fighting Crooked Joe Biden, he polls badly after having a terrible debate, and quits the race. Now we have to start all over again. Shouldn’t the Republican Party be reimbursed for fraud in that everybody around Joe, including his doctors and the Fake News Media, knew he was not capable of running for, or being, President? Just askin’?
it’s the prosecutor versus the felon. I’ll take that.
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My thoughts on the Harris Candidacy.
I still believe in her and in the basic goodness of the American people. I believe that the people will choose goodness over evil, love over hate and progress over going back.
when faced with the choice – a demented, deranged senile old man filled with hatred and revenge, or a competent accomplished woman they will make the right choice.
Congratulations, my Berkeley hometown girl. You got this girl.
Go Bold or go Home!
Berkeley Girl Makes It
The news
that Biden
was stepping down
throwing his support.
for Kamala Harris
as President.
filled me with joy
and anticipation.
Kamala Harris
attended my elementary school
Thousand Oaks in Berkeley
a few years before me.
and is a Berkeley girl
through and through.
Go Berkely !
Thousand Oak Girl I say.
T.O Toughie Girl Power.
the first Female VP
of Asian descent
the first VP
of black descent
the first Caribbean
to be on the ticket.
and the first Hindu
as well.
and the first
Berkeley native
on the ticket.
it is time
for Berkeley to rule
in my humble opinion.
Kamala
here’s what I would campaign on.
the theme would be getting stuff done for the people!
Reforming the Federal Budget
This is perhaps boring to voters but very important to the long-term stability of the country.
I would call upon Congress to change how they do budgets and shift to a two-year budgetary cycle. The first year of Congress would be devoted to passing the two-year budget, the second year would be devoted to oversight and supplemental budget requests.
Coupled that shifting to a calendar year budget. Eliminate the possibility of government shutdowns by enacting automatic CR’s if budgets are not passed on time. But also require budgets to be passed on time – December 1 in the prior year. If a budget is not passed on time, keep congress in town until the budget is passed. And if for some reason the budget is not passed, dinge congressional salaries until the budget is passed.
Second commission a study to look at our tax situation and make suggestions for common sense tax reform. Start by figuring out how much money the government spends in a given year, the reform of the tax code to generate most of the revenue from taxes. Consider a national sales tax as well. Reserve borrowing for large scale infrastructure, and military spending. And consider a surcharge on income of about 25 million per year.
I would also look at federal spending and ask that all departments identify lower priority projects with a required 5% reduction in federal spending per agency over a four year period, except for health related and education related agencies which would be given a considerable bump up in spending. I would do this for three years so that in three years overall spending has been reduced by about 10 percent. Leave it up to the agencies to identify lower priority projects that should not be micromanaged by the White House.
For the defense department consider eliminating such things as golf courses, domestic PX and commissary stores and other non-essential spending.
Finally consider turning over some federal government functions to the states. The conservative idea of moving federal agencies out of Washington DC has considerable merit in my opinion.
The rest of my earlier suggestions follow with a few updates
I retired from the U.S. State Department in 2016 after 27 years of service. I grew up in Berkeley went to college at the University of the Pacific and graduated from the University of Washington (MA Korean Studies, MPA). I also served in the Peace Corps in Korea. I have been to 49 out of 50 states (minus Alaska) and 45 countries.
My advice, in a nutshell, is to make this a campaign about the future and your vision of the future. Paint your opponent Donald Trump as yesterday’s candidate, and mock him, calling on Grandpa Trump to retire to Florida and play golf. Depict him as senile, out of touch, corrupt and focused on returning America to the 19th Century. And call for progressive bold new ideas for the future of America. Be optimistic, be full of hope and goodwill. Freely steal from Bernie and Elizabeth’s proposals and adopt her detailed plans – after talking with her of course. Call for reform not revolution and stress competence vs. incompetence and chaos.
Hillary’s biggest mistake was in my view making it all about how bad Donald Trump is, and not giving the voters a real sense of where she wanted to take the country. and making it seemed that she thought she was entitled, and it was her time. that is a big turnoff in politics.
She also took it for granted and did not compete everywhere. You have to out hustle Trump and go everywhere – hold virtual town halls everywhere until the Corona virus threat fades away.
You have to earn the trust of the voters and can’t be seen as thinking you are entitled to the presidency because you have done your dues so to speak. That is the kiss of electoral suicide – look at Mitch Romney and Hillary Clinton – both lost because they thought that it was their time and they were entitled to the presidency, the voters simply thought otherwise and showed them the door.
And in an age where the voters were ready for a big change to the status quo, being the establishment candidate was the kiss of death. Not to mention she refused to compete everywhere. And allowed Donald Trump to paint her as “crooked Hillary” and as too much part of the establishment which the public rightly destructed so much. She could have picked Bernie Sanders as her running mate, and perhaps defeated Donald Trump. In the end she won where it did not matter and did not compete where she should have competed.
So, in this upcoming election you have to tell the voters why you are so much better for them and the country than Donald Trump. It will not be enough to run against Donald. People have to want to vote for you. Your experience counts for a lot, but it is not enough.
How to Beat Trump
talk constantly about Donald Trump being the most corrupt president in US history and that he is guilty or gross nepotism.
Finally, ignore his tweets. When he tweets something obnoxious dismiss it with the phrase “There he Goes Again”.
then talk about your bold yet pragmatic agenda over and over again.
GO BOLD OR GO HOME
The times cries out for bold progressive challenges and for fresh thinking. Make people want to vote for you as they share your vision of the possible future. and want to have a positive, can do message. Here are my suggested policy proposals.
I would put forth a series of comprehensive bold future-oriented policies and reiterate them every chance you get. You could call them Joe’s Plan for the Future of America, or Kamala’s Contract with the American People, something along those lines.
“Let’s Boldly Go into the Future,”
and rename your campaign as “Kamala for the American People” . Use one of your great assets your reputation for being an everyday person. But be big, bold, brassy, optimistic and challenge your opponents to produce a better plan or shut up and work with you to solve the nation’s problems.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent grads, they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service.
Call for The Green New Deal
Point out time and time again China, Germany, and other countries are building the green energy resources of the future while the U.S. which invented green energy is moving back to the 19th century.
When critics say we can’t afford this, tell them we can’t afford to ruin the world for our children’s future. We can’t afford to continue burning fossil fuels. Climate change is real, and the U.S. must lead the way forward. That is what great nations do, lead the world in embracing change, in embracing the promise of the future. We can do no less.
Call to Fix Obama Care
Point out time and time again that we still have a broken down too expensive too burdensome a health care system. Point out time and time again that we have the most expensive system in the world, yet we are about 25th in terms of health care outcomes. No one in this land should fear going bankrupt if they need to get medical care. We can do this right and we must do it right.
I would acknowledge that Obama Care is not perfect and that if you had a chance to re-do it you would make it much less bureaucratic and less burdensome. But be proud of what the Democrats accomplished. Promise to fix it and make it work.
One potential fix would be to open the Federal Health Care system to anyone who needs insurance and continue to provide subsidies to keep the premiums down.
Another option would be an expansion of Medicare, so it covers about half the country.
And enact permanent paid sick leave up to a month for all companies employing more than ten people.
When Republicans proclaim that they will repeal Obamacare and replace it with something, call them on their bullshit. Demand to know the plan now or tell them to shut up and work with you to fix Obamacare.
call for a slight reduction of military spending and national security spending to beef up health care spending and universal education access.
Call to repair our alliances
Declare that our allies are our allies and our friends, and we will work with them to solve the world’s problems and restore American leadership. We will rejoin the Paris Climate Change and work to make sure it works. We will rejoin the Transpacific Partnership. and we will figure out how to work with China and even Russia to solve problems of mutual interest such as climate change. Vow to restore partnership with Mexico and Canada and Latin America as well as India and Southeast Asia. and restore ties with Europe as well. Rebuild the UN and international organizations. And join the international criminal court. Finally close Gitmo as an affront to the American system of justice and human rights. Re Israel vow to work with Palestinians and Israelis alike to restart the peace process.
Offer a New Deal to North Korea
We will continue to negotiate with the North Koreans, offering them a way towards reunification with South Korea and rejoining the world economic community. You can damn the former President here with faint praise. Say that it was good that he took the initiative to break the log jam and talk to the North, but due to his inexperience and his naivety he was unable to make a deal as the North Koreans played him. You can finish the job.
Offer to Talk with The Iranians
Tell the Iranians we are ready to talk with them and want a new deal that would benefit them and the U.S. along the lines of what we are offering the North Koreans.
Bring the Troops Home
I would call for some U.S. troops to return to the U.S., where they will be reposted along our borders and serve as adjunct border patrol agents and first responders as part of their mandatory new national service.
Rebuild America
I would gradually reduce military spending and devote resources to rebuilding America’s crumbling infrastructure. This must include high-speed trains, and must include perhaps hyper-loop technology or Maglev trains? And the next generation of airplanes as well. We must rebuild our mass transit systems. We must embrace the development of driverless vehicles. and as mention we must beef up health care spending and assure universal access to higher education. These must be the new national priorities. I would throw the republicans a bone offers to look at modest reductions in other government spending for example decreasing spending on NPR but not eliminating it, and a slight decrease in foreign assistance, and UN contributions etc. and other government programs could be trimmed down a bit to pay for higher priorities.
Challenge the Republicans on their “you are weakening national security” BS. When the Republican scream you are weakening national security call them out on their BS.
Ask them how repositioning troops to help deal with national security issues at home weakens national security? How does going to universal military service weaken national security? How does getting out of endless wars weaken national security? How does closing a few bases in Europe weaken national security? Or closing a golf course? Or a commissary? Point out that we already spend more on national security than any other nation on earth. How does rebuilding America’s failed infrastructure weaken national security? How does providing medical care or universal higher education which benefits the entire nation hamper national security? Challenge them to produce a better plan.
Call for Comprehensive Immigration Reform
Start by acknowledging we need to improve security at the border, but the wall is a waste of time and money that will not solve the problem. We need a comprehensive 21st century immigration policy that balances the need for continued immigration with the need to ensure that immigrants contribute to our country and enrich our country as they always have and always will. Again throw the republicans a bone offers to ensure that E Verify is widely used by all employers and punish employers who hire illegals. I would also consider getting rid of the diversity visa program and the sibling immigration category but grandfather people in that category giving them two years to complete the immigration process with no new applicants being accepted. I would also push English language skills for immigrants as one of the new requirements – they must be able to handle the immigrant visa interview in English. That is something I agree with Trump on.
Challenge the Republicans to come up a better plan and work with you to implement it.
Call for A Return to Space Including Lunar Colonies and Martian Colonies
It is time for the U.S. to lead the world again in space exploration. Offer to lead the way in building lunar and Martian colonies with the participation of the world’s other space powers.
Call for The Legalization of Marijuana, Emptying the Prisons of Marijuana Offenders
End the endless war on drugs. Repeal marijuana prohibition. Empty the prisons of marijuana offenders. End the private prison for profit system. End the prison pipeline that sweeps up brown and black youths and sucks them into prison for life. Reserve prisons for the most dangerous offenders, all other prisoners should be sentenced to community service, drug treatment or other non-prison sentences. Use the money saved by closing prisons for rebuilding infrastructure.
Gun Control
I like your gun control proposals. It is a step forward. Continue to push for universal background checks.
Fully Support LGBT rights
Fully Support the religious freedom of all Americans including non-believers
Call for a Return to traditional American civil norms that Trump has so badly damaged
For VP Pick a centrist male governor.
I like the governor of Kentucky or North Carolina The governor of Michigan would be a good choice too. the Governor of California not so much.
To sum up, be cautious, small-minded, narrowly focused, and all about how bad Donald is, you will lose.
In any event, I believe that the time is now to call for national service in exchange for free college tuition/vocational training or grants to open small businesses. Three years of service followed by four years of either college/technical training, or assistance in opening a small business.
Call for Free College Education Coupled with National Service Requirements.
Dear Democratic Candidates:
I am writing to all of you and to President Trump to call for your to embrace national service in exchange for free college/technical training or assistance in opening a business.
It is time to change the game plan in Washington DC. You need a new bold proposal that will unite the country and heal the divisions. My proposal is for you to embrace mandatory national service for three years. Everyone finishing their service would receive full funding for college, technical training or a grant to set up their own business because after all not everyone needs to go to college, we need to encourage technical training and starting up small business as well.
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the key is that the service would be universal and all citizens and LPR’s between the ages of 18 and 25 would serve three years – no exceptions. Most would be military, but people could serve as fine fathers. adjust police officers, adjust border patrol officers, adjust teachers, peace corps volunteers or serve in state/local and federal government positions.
Call for all Americans to serve three years in public service either in the military or in the government or NGO sector and in return, they will get four years of college paid for. For recent graduates , they can serve and get their college debt forgiven. To those who say we can’t afford this, say we can’t afford to continue to put our college students in crippling debt they cannot afford. And everyone, especially the rich, should shoulder the burden of national service. and point out that shifting to a mandatory national service requirement would save the Pentagon money on salaries. the cost would be modest – minimum wage, housing, medical care and college tuition after their service. People would serve between age 18 and 25 one year of training and two years of service, with an optional second enlistment for three more years of educational benefits through PHD/professional degrees. Starting at age 18 until age 25 people will be randomly selected to begin service. those who are 25 will have until they turn 26 to report for service. They would have one year to report for service.
Free College/technical training or money to open a business in exchange for national service
Most people will start college, or tech training institute, then do military or other service, and then return to college to finish their college. That is fine. Ensure that colleges will not only accommodate that but will also offer college credits for military and other on the job training acquired during national service. This would also cut the cost of college attendance for most people to a manageable three years instead of four to five years. And of course, ensure that people can go to technical training institutes instead of a traditional college as we really need to grow the next generation of technical workers as well. and also ensure that those who wish financial assistance in setting up a small business would receive that assistance as well as we need to encourage the small business start ups as well.
After Service can compete to become an NCO/Officer or work for the Federal/State/Local/tribal government/ UN or NGO
After finishing basis service, those who wish to make a career of it could compete to become an NCO or an officer, and resume service after finishing college. And/or compete to enter government service for the Federal government or state and local government as well. and the service academies will only accept those who have finished basic service. This would apply to new service academies being set up, see below for more details.
All Must Serve
And most importantly, shared national service will help restore America’s sense that this is our land, this land belongs to everyone. The rich and the poor alike. We are all in this together. We have lost sight of that. The military has become an army of paid mercenaries recruited from the lower classes. If everyone serves, there will be less temptation to send troops into harms way. This will be a win- win for everyone except for the student loan vultures.
I would bring most of the troops home and station them along the southern border where they could be used to help bolster border security, and assist as first responders to natural disaster. Sell this as a real border security that will get the job done.
Establish New Service Academies for the Diplomatic, Intelligence Services/ Space Force/NASA, and law Enforcement
I would also call for four new national service academies to be set up. One would be for diplomatic and intelligence service, the other would be for law enforcement, the third would be for the Space Force/and NASA, the last would be more technical scientific agencies of the Federal government focusing on science and technology issues. These academies like the military academies including a coast guard academy, and beefing up the maritime service academy, would take only those who finished their military basis service. this would be a great way to restore our diplomatic corps and intelligence services as well as our law enforcement person. All graduates can meet their service obligation (five years post graduation) through working for Federal/State/local/tribal governments, the UN or NGO’s. all the service academies as well as the Medical Medical schools, the foreign service training center (which will be transformed into the new diplomatic/intelligence training academy) would work together on the national service academies consortium to coordinate policies and training, including post graduate training programs at the various military and other federal government training programs.
National Service Will Bring US together as one nation
I believe that this proposal could be enacted with widespread bipartisan support. It would go a long way to help heal the divisions of our country and bring us all together as a nation. I hope you will fully embrace this proposal and I look forward to discussing it with yours staff.
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Yeah, I said it. At 78-years-old, Donald is practically fossilized. You wouldn’t trust your grandpa to fix your Wi-Fi, so why let him run the country? He’s older than dirt and twice as clueless.
Like holy shit, did you see his speech at the RNC last week? The giant creep rambled on for 2 hours like he was Grandpa Simpson.
Look, the presidency is a tough gig. It needs someone with energy, someone who can stay awake past 7 PM without nodding off. Trump?
HE FALLS ASLEEP IN COURT.
He fell asleep during his own convention. He’s got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel. The only marathon he’s running is a nap marathon.
And let’s talk about the gaffes—Donald says some stupid insane shit that doesn’t make sense every single time he speaks. The only people it makes sense to are also totally delusional Christian Nationalist freaks like Marjorie Taylore Greene.
And don’t get me started on the health issues. Remember that mysterious trip to Walter Reed? Make America great again? This man can’t handle a ramp. The only thing he can make great again is the act of faceplanting into the ground.
So, here’s the divine decree: Trump, pack it up. Go home, put on your slippers, and watch Matlock reruns. Leave running the country to someone who can remember what day it is without checking Fox News. It’s time for you to drop out, you crusty old bag of assholes.
Now that I, the LORD THY GOD, have brought attention to this issue, I am sure the media will be obsessing about it every day from here on out.
Before we start: I did a YouTube thing about Biden last night, if you’re interested.
Now let’s go.
(1) The Democratic party is a healthy institution.
On the night of June 27, the various power centers within the Democratic party began a difficult conversation: Was Joe Biden still capable of running a vigorous campaign?
Over three weeks the party reached a diffuse—if not unanimous—consensus: He was not. This consensus was the product of all levels of the party: Elder statesmen such as Nancy Pelosi, elected Democrats analyzing their own future prospects, donors making decisions about spending, and the main body of public opinion among Democratic voters.
Once this consensus was reached, the various power centers began a dialogue with the party’s leader, President Biden. The party expressed its choice. Biden pushed back. The party took up the question again and, after due consideration, held firm.
Joe Biden then stepped aside for the good of the nation.
This is how healthy institutions are supposed to work.
At The Bulwark there has been a lot of drama over the last three weeks. We told you what we really thought, even though it meant making some people mad.
Our mission is to have honest and real conversations. Because that’s what healthy institutions do.
Right here, in the Bulwark community, those conversations were great. I mean, they were often painful. But they were always civil and conducted in good faith.
How special is this community? We had one member who was so disappointed in us that he cancelled his subscription and then came back to the comments every day to try to convince others to cancel their subscriptions, too. And he did it passionately, but with respect.
Where do you find people like that on the internet? It was amazing.
The coming weeks are going to be full of history. Come and ride through it with us.
2. The process which elevated Kamala Harris was sensible.
The Democratic party made another institutional decision in parallel with the Biden question: It vetted Kamala Harris.
This subroutine executed in the background, but it was active. Democratic voters began to consider her as the nominee and polling showed that they were comfortable with her. Party elders evaluated her fitness. Donors and elected Democrats took her measure. The fact that no anti-Harris groundswell—or even boom let—emerged is proof that the party decided that Harris was an acceptable nominee.
After Biden blessed Harris on Sunday afternoon, the party coalesced around her in much the way it did Biden after the New Hampshire primary in 2020.
The Democratic party will enter the election more unified than it had been pre-debate.
3. Kamala Harris can run as an insurgent, but with the advantages of an incumbent.
The largest advantage of incumbency is that a candidate does not have to take base-pleasing positions during a primary campaign that can hurt him during a general election.
Because of the extraordinary nature of her ascendence, Harris possesses this advantage. She will carry nearly every advantage of incumbency and yet she can credibly position herself as this election’s change agent.
4. Trump is holding the age bomb.
The Trump campaign spent two years creating a political bomb concerning old age. They assumed that they could plant this bomb at the feet of Joe Biden.
Trump is now the one holding the age bomb. He is not only a full generation older than Harris—everything about him looks geriatric by comparison. From his gait to his bronzed-over pallor; from the way he rambles and gets lost in sentences to his inability to keep facts straight.
Every split screen now makes Trump look old and decrepit by comparison.
That’s more money than any Democrat has ever raised in a single day. It’s twice as much as Trump raised following his felony conviction. If this doesn’t snap your head back, it should.
Because it’s as good a proxy as you’ll find for excitement.
It will be several days until we have polling with a more detailed view of Harris’s support from Democratic voters, but it is already clear that she will perform much better than Biden has within her party.
Here’s my advice: You should be open to the idea that Harris could ride a wave of excitement and passion that absolutely no one was seeing until Biden stepped aside. I’m talking Obama ‘08-levels of energy.
It’s not a given. But it’s in the realm of the possible. Keep your eyes peeled for it.
At the debate, Donald Trump also demonstrated (again) that he is unfit for office. He rambled and lied incoherently. He is a convicted felon. A jury found him guilty of sexual assault. He has said he wants to be a “dictator” and that he wants to “terminate” parts of the Constitution. He selected as his running mate a man who advised disobeying orders from the Supreme Court and forcing a constitutional crisis.
Until last week there was nothing stopping the Republican party from forcing Trump off the ticket. The party elders and elected officials could have demanded that Trump step aside. Republican voters could have said that they had no confidence in his ability to govern. Donors could have closed their wallets.
But the plain fact is that not one single Republican called on Trump to step aside.
Not one.
Why? Because the various precincts of the Republican party understand that they hold no power—at all—over Trump. They could not ask him to withdraw from the race. Even broaching the subject would be grounds for excommunication from the party.
The Democratic party is a functioning institution, with checks and balances; constituencies and power structures. Like any institution, it is amorphous and its decision making is mostly organic.
The Republican party is an autocracy where the only thing that matters is the will of the leader. All power flows through him. All decisions are made by him. There are no competing power centers—only vassal states overseen by his noblemen.
One of the reasons the last three weeks have been so difficult is because Democrats were not choosing between a “good” outcome and a “bad” outcome.
Those sorts of choices are easy.
Instead, Democrats were tasked with deciding between least-bad options. Humans rebel against the idea of “least-bad.” When faced with choices, we want to believe that at least one of them is “good.”
When the first real Harris-vs.-Trump polling comes out next week we’ll see how big of a hole she’s in. But unlike Biden, Harris has the ability to spend the next three months on offense, all day, every day. If she can deliver the goods, she has a puncher’s chance.
A slight push-back against those who believe Biden took too long to step aside:
It was three and a half weeks from the debate to Biden pulling out. That’s it.
Joe Biden is the president, but he’s also just a man. Coming to a decision like this one—an unprecedented decision—is hard. There’s a lot to weigh and there’s a tremendous responsibility to get it right.
My own view is that Biden made the call basically as quickly as possible. He couldn’t have done it the week of the NATO summit. Then Trump was shot in the ear. Then there was the Republican convention. To my mind, Biden’s timing on this was optimal, actually.
Nothing about Joe Biden’s presidency was inevitable. Not his candidacy. Not his victory over Trump. Not his withdrawal from reelection.
At nearly every turn, Biden did the right thing for America.
His legacy is assured. He will be remembered as one of the great modern presidents.
I said this last night and I’ll say it again. History had its eye on Joe Biden, and he met the moment. He did his part. Now it’s up to Kamala Harris and us to do ours.
In the coming weeks we will find out if the people who said, “I hate Trump, but Biden is too old” really meant it.
Will they find some new excuse for why they have to vote for Trump? Will they become unconcerned about the risks of old age and cognitive decline in a president?
I’m not talking about partisan public personalities on Twitter. I’m talking about swing voters: The kind of Trump-to-Biden voters who have been backsliding in Trump’s direction.
Sarah’s focus groups are going to be absolutely vital for understanding how this group thinks. Don’t miss them.
for about an hour after Biden’s announcement, I ran around with my hair on fire. I’d just spent a month warning everyone about the chaos that Biden dropping out would bring — infighting, battles over fundraising, lawsuits, atonal music, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together — mass hysteria.
and then a thing happened that I absolutely did not see coming: just about the entire Democratic establishment immediately threw their support behind Kamala Harris.
Mr. Biden endorsed Ms. Harris within minutes on Sunday afternoon. Before she had uttered a word about her intentions, he was swiftly followed by other party leaders, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, key Democratic senators and influential House members. By the evening, Mr. Shapiro had publicly backed Ms. Harris after a phone call from her. She also picked up endorsements from Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, Mr. Cooper and Mr. Kelly.
A coalition of former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley voters pledged their support for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid on Sunday, hours after President Joe Biden announced that he was dropping out of the race.
Joe Biden remains a master at doing politics. Dark Brandon dark-Brandon the shit out of his passing of the torch. clearly, this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision. Joe had to have worked behind the scenes to shore up this much immediate support for Kamala. he made sure not one word of any this leaked. he timed the announcement of his decision so that Donny and the Republicans spent the entire convention running against the wrong candidate. and the pièce de résistance —
Sending out a press release on Sunday afternoon, after the morning talk shows, totally screwed the media. No video clips, no “breaking news,” no chance for pundits to comment on how he sounded, looked, walked, etc. No chance to schedule guests to pick him apart as he spoke. He totally starved them of clicks and eyeballs, in repayment for them starving his candidacy of positive coverage purely for the sake of clicks and eyeballs.
look, I didn’t want any of this to happen. Biden was my guy, and I was prepared to back Joe all the way to November and beyond. but, that said, I have to admit that last night I slept better than I have any time in the last month.
now let’s turn our attention to all the people who need to fuck all the way off.
Stelter spent a month screaming that JOE MUST GO — but now that he’s gotten what he wanted, he’s moved the goalposts to JOE MUST GO BUT NOT LIKE THIS. some people are just never happy.
“some” is doing a fuck-ton of heavy lifting here. are these “some” black voters in the room with us right now?
note to Times nepo-publisher Arthur Gregg Sulzberger: it doesn’t matter how hard you suck up to Donny, he’s not going to make the Times his official state media if he takes power. stop trying.
in fact, all the nitwits still rooting for their own personal fantasy ticket can fuck off.
how many times does Michelle Obama need to state that she has no interest in running for office? you’re wasting everyone’s time with this mental masturbation. do it in private.
we all knew that the Republicans were immediately going to pivot to “now Joe Biden must resign” — but these clowns are not thinking this through. first of all, Joe quitting is a big bowl of never gonna happen. second, does the GOP really want to spend the next three months running against President Kamala Harris?
now this is awesome: the Republican Party just realized that they’re no longer running against icky old Joe Biden who smells bad and is too demented to realize that he died six months ago. they created this whole fiction about Joe Biden and now they can’t use any of it — and they’re freaking the fuck out.
“they held a primary! people, they had ballots! they filled out circles! they went to the voting booths! they spent money on advertisements! and as president Trump, said the Republican Party spent tens of millions of dollars running against Joe Biden! now they just woke up one morning and said never mind, we’re canceling the entire primary, we’re getting rid of our candidate and pretending the election just never even happened and let donors hand-pick a new nominee?”
it’s not fair! how dare the Democrats come together around a young and vibrant candidate, leaving our guy to be the old fart in the race.
boo fucking hoo, you grievance-babies. you demanded this happen, and now you’re whining about it. shut the fuck up and dry your eyes. here’s your binky.
as Stephen Miller noted in his crybaby rant, Donny Convict is hopping mad. he’s demanding to speak to Sleepy Brandon’s manager because he wants his money back.
So, we are forced to spend time and money on fighting Crooked Joe Biden, he polls badly after having a terrible debate, and quits the race. Now we have to start all over again. Shouldn’t the Republican Party be reimbursed for fraud in that everybody around Joe, including his doctors and the Fake News Media, knew he was not capable of running for, or being, President? Just askin’?
it’s the prosecutor versus the felon. I’ll take that.
…Substack
JAKECOSMOSALLER.SUBSTACK.COM
My Thoughts On the Harris For President
My Thoughts on the Harris Candidacy. https://wp.me/p7NAzO-2Zb Health Care Reforms For Joe and Kamala Joe, Go Bold or Go Home – revisedThanks for reading jake’s Newsletter! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. Joe, Either Go Bold or Retire!
author at a Korean temple 1980?
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it’s the prosecutor versus the felon. I’ll take that.
·Penn Quarter·13h