In a speech drafted by his hard-line policy adviser, Stephen Miller, Mr. Trump plans to challenge the world to do more to counter threats from Iran and North Korea.
When I first heard this madman's speech, it felt less like serious ideological policy crafted by hard line, experienced neocons, and more like the words of a 16yr old young republican male feeling his political oats for the very first time after hearing a Barry Goldwater speech.
Turns out, none other than our favorite young Red Hat (as opposed to Hitler's young brownshirts), Stephen Miller, was the author. This explains the adolescent absurdity of it all.
Oh, and the President of the United States just announced, at the United Nations, his intention to carry out the biggest crime against humanity since the Holocaust.
Other than that, it was a nice speech by a 16yr old young republican...
And that's the problem with "Clintonism," e.g. neoliberalism - you have to be able to stand firm, even if it means shutting down the government. In which case, you need to communicate with the American people more effectively.
I think you're on to something, and it is something that has been on my mind for a while now.
I think we're looking at this in the wrong way.
Yes, there are elements of fascism in Trumpism, but, as you stated, I think there is also an element of anarchy - an anarchy that could partially explain the obsession with Russia by the Trumpists, with its roots being in 19th century Russian anarchism/socialism.
Let's call this "anarcho-fascist Trumpism."
Of course Trump doesn't have the intellect to formulate or interpret any of this, but I think someone in his sphere is quite enamored of Russian history vis-a-vis the methods of revolutionary transformation.
Trumpism as a "People's Will" movement, more concerned with nihilism and chaos than with any coherent political ideology. Instead of the two-headed Goebbels, Bannon and Miller are more aligned with a Bakunin and/or a Nechaev.
The former pushing an economically neoliberal populism, while the latter a socialistic populism - both of which were doomed to failure because of their authoritarian underpinnings.
Obviously, this is not a perfect comparison, and I only offer it as a starting point in the alternative to the "Trumpism as Nazism" premise.
It's late Sunday night, and I'm a bit punchy, so feel free to dismiss or just laugh off.
I'll probably do the same in the a.m...LOL
This is Trump's latest tweet, approx 5PM EST, Friday, Feb. 17.
I post this because it underlines what you've written, Juan.
This is not funny anymore, not that it ever was.
This man is mad.
This is dangerous.
What happens when a prominent media figure is assassinated?
Or when a pipe bomb detonates at a MSM outlet, either print or TV (since radio is pretty much under fascist control)?
None of his tweets - however insane they've been - have given me chills like this one has:
Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump 1h1 hour ago
The FAKE NEWS media (failing @nytimes, @NBCNews, @ABC, @CBS, @CNN) is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American People!
29,204 replies 14,303 retweets 42,046 likes
You've listed a few possible motives here, and I'd just like to add one more.
It's no secret that Trump has gone bankrupt a number of times. It's very probable that because of this, US financial institutions refused to extend him any more credit. So where is a broke "billionaire" to go for an infusion of cash?
You got it: Vladimir's Savings & Loan, LLC, i.e. Russian banks and/or oligarchs.
My guess is that knowing the extent of his connections to these people, it was too tempting to refuse, and, naturally, this was something to be done off the books and under the table, so it wouldn't be something that would be recorded on his tax returns, although there may be some legitimate business dealings that might be embarrassing to him.
This would explain much of this, and I think that this is the heart of the issue, and explains his cozy relationship with Putin.
Why are you not booked on MSM or cable news shows?
I don't think I've ever seen you on any.
If you should be, please let us know asap.
What you write needs to be heard by the masses, if possible...
I've been following media bias since FAIR put out their study showing how biased ABC's Nightline was by their history of using almost all white/male establishment guests. So we've known for a long time how unrepresentative the MSM has been, which completely destroys the right's claim of a liberal bias. So I agree with what you describe Joe, which is nothing short of a revolution to break up and to seize control of the MSM by putting it in the hands of the public, which supposedly owns it in the first place, right?!
But I do, however, want to point out that I've noticed that the CBS Evening News w/Scott Pelley is doing a pretty good job of calling out Trump and his administration on their lies and disinformation campaign. It's still not enough, though.
Here's what's really scary about Trump, the fact that he's relying on these tinfoil hat sources for his information, whether he reads/watches them directly, or is getting this indirectly from a Bannon.
He's doing the same with the murder rate statistics. He's lying about those as well, claiming the rate has risen over a 40 yr period, when, in fact, the opposite is the case. The rate peaked in 91-92, and has dropped ever since, with a slight rise over the past 2 yrs, and that's without factoring in US population growth over the past 40yrs!
When the POTUS rejects the facts gathered by his own law enforcement agencies, while believing the propaganda given to him by the likes of Bannon or, God forbid, an Alex Jones, then we know we're getting further and further down the rabbit hole...
I would just add that to agree with Joe's point IS NOT to be a Trump defender. It's not our problem that an egomaniacal narcissistic neo fascist racist might have one belief - if it is an actual belief - that might be consistent with the progressives!
Joe, no attack intended on you, and I apologize if it came across as that. This is a good, healthy debate, which is what I love about Juan's blog, how he allows us to do so in more detail and in a thoughtful, respectful way.
I think you make some great points!
Give cred where cred is due, even if it is Richard Nixon or Donald Trump! lol
When Trump makes a statement like he did, it really makes me wonder if maybe there's just a little hint of anti-imperialism beneath that thick skull of his. Of course that would be a good thing. But then he dashes any hope when we see his real imperial self as it manifests itself in his rhetoric on Iran, Mexico or North Korea, etc.
And that's always been the worry for me, not that he'll start something with a China, or a Russia, but with another weaker nation, like Iran.
But even if we do give Trump the benefit of the doubt in certain instances, we must never forget that it's within the context of his neo-fascist tendencies, that's all I'm trying to say, otherwise, we'll find ourselves normalizing him and his regime, both of which we need to continue to #resist.
I think we're on the same page in that regard...
This is the one honest thing he's said!
Joe, I get your points, and you've stated them well.
And I happen to agree that a good relationship with Russia isn't necessarily a bad thing, especially given the nuclear stakes.
Let's recall how when Nixon sought detente with the CCCP (wow, there's an old skool acronym), there was fairly universal bi-partisan support, even though Soviet repression & expansionism was a well known fact at the time.
I think the difference today is the context of the Russian interference & covert support of Trump, plus the questions about his business relationships in Russia. If we had found out that Nixon had similar relationships with a Brezhnev or a Kosygin, or that the Soviets had somehow tried to influence the '72 election in Nixon's favor, I think we'd question Nixon's motives just as we are doing today.
Under different circumstances, yes, "detente" with Russia today would be a good thing, but just not by this President.
PS Juan, I wish you wouldn't capitalize terms like neo-fascist or neo-nazi. I just think it gives more import to the terms, and even if it's just the small act of using lower case letters, even the smallest, symbolic bit of marginalization of these elements matters...
Mexico isn't a predominantly Muslim society, so the fact that it isn't on the list is more evidence that this is a religious-based discriminatory policy targeting only Muslim nations.
It was either incompetence or pressure from powerful business interests that forced these neofascists to not include Mexico, which would have helped their facile defense of this inhuman policy...
Also, let's never forget how in 2011, the Norwegian white supremacist neo-nazi terrorist Anders Breivik slaughtered 77 innocent people, or how in 2015, American white supremacist Dylan Roof murdered 9 African Americans in a Charleston church, and now, just last night, 6 Muslims were massacred in a mosque in Ontario.
The fact that white, right wing Norwegians or Canadians aren't being targeted for "extreme vetting," or that white, neo-nazi American men are slated for expulsion tells you all you need to know about the nature of Trump and his fascist administration.
Over the past 10 yrs, the % of Americans murdered by Islamic extremists vs US-born, male, white supremacists is about the same...
But, wait!
Melania tapped a little-known Hispanic designer for her inaugural debut!
"Melania Trump on Thursday picked a little-known New York designer of Hispanic descent and daughter of a wounded veteran, for her first outfit celebrating husband Donald's presidential inauguration.
The choice of a knee-length, black coat from Norisol Ferrari for her visit to the Arlington National Cemetery was something of an inspired choice for Trump, who has been criticized in the past for favoring high-end European clothes."
The Western-imposed sanctions on Russia are seriously hurting Putin and much of the Russian oligarchy. Clinton was clear about maintaining these sanctions. Trump has indicated on numerous occasions his intent to have better relations with Russia, which could include the lifting of these crippling (by Russian oligarchical standards) sanctions.
Whether their attempts were successful or not, this was the motive for the Russian interference in the US Presidential election: it's all about the money. Only the details need to be sussed out...
On the refugee crises, it was Western interventionism - mostly led by the US - that created this problem in the first place! And now Trump and his neo-fascist surrogates (with support from a large % of Republicans) want to stop a measly 20k or so highly vetted refugees from coming to America.
The notion that the "secret government" along with "dark forces" are "plotting a coup against Trump" is laughable.
Trump represents the powerful economic and military elites in this country. A person who appoints more generals to his cabinet than any previous Presidents, and who has stocked his administration with Goldman Sachs executives, is hardly representative of a threat to the dark forces and secret government that may run the country.
His economic and military policies are precisely aligned with the interests of these powers, secret or not.
Unless the "secret government" and "dark forces" you describe are a bunch of socialists and pacifists, that would certainly be news to me, and most Americans familiar with US imperial history.
In art, you learn about "negative vs positive space."
The areas that you don't pay attention to, the empty spaces between figures or objects, are just as essential to the piece as the obvious and visible areas.
I.e., that which is not seen is just as important as that which is.
So we may never know what damaging information the Russians had on Trump which might have had a major impact on the election if it had been revealed.
That's the more serious aspect of this, at least, for me...
TLP:WHITE
Description
The U.S. Government confirms that two different RIS
actors participated in the intrusion into a U.S. political party. The first actor group, known as Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) 29, entered into the party’s systems in summer 2015, while the second, known as APT28, entered in spring 2016.
What's astounding to me is how the "Tinfoil Hat Brigade," as you describe them, the Breitbarts, the Alex Jones's, etc - people who push wild conspiracy theories like The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, The Bilderbergs, ZOG, #pizzagate, or even that the moon landing was staged - how these people refuse to see the ACTUAL takeover of the US government by this band of Russian-influenced oligarchs, with Trump and his surrogates as the front men.
They only have to look at the daily headlines (assuming they believe them) to see it unfolding before their very eyes.
Instead, they'll rant on about the UN global conspiracy, all the while ignoring or dismissing the kakistocracy that we're now living under.
I'd recommend watching the films "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" or "Gas Light" to understand this mass psychosis.
"Starting off as the most unpopular and distrusted Democratic nominee in modern times..."
...she now has nearly 3 million more votes than Trump.
What does that say about Trump's popularity compared to hers?
And so, given this context, the Russian break in of the DNC has a little more importance than to be dismissed outright, as Trump and his surrogates would like us to do.
Again, the '72 break in of the DNC didn't have much impact on the election, as McGovern was trounced by Nixon.
But we didn't dismiss the break in's seriousness because of that fact. And I believe it's just as legitimate to ask serious questions about what relationship the Trump campaign, or its surrogates, has with Russia, and any possible complicity by them with Russian actors. If true, then we're talking about another coverup, which is very apparent as Trump and his surrogates dismiss this as all fabricated. Even Nixon couldn't deny there was an actual break in. It was the coverup, and all other related "high crimes & misdemeanors," that ultimately destroyed his Presidency.
If this is all proven true, I'm not sure Trump could be charged and/or convicted since these crimes happened before he was elected. But if he continued a possible coverup after Jan. 20, then I'm fairly certain he could be impeached.
So, is Obama a willing or unwitting participant in this US intelligence anti-Putin disinformation campaign?
After all, he's taking the lead in pushing it.
The CIA and other intel agencies certainly deserve a great deal of skepticism from the American people, but that doesn't mean they should NEVER be believed, right?
They warned the Bush admin. of the imminent threat by Bin Laden and AQ, but it was Bush, et al that ignored the threat.
I don't think you're suggesting that.
Again, on Iraq, it was Bush and Cheney and Wolfowitz and Rumsfeld who were running their WMD disinformation effort out of the White House, while CIA analysts were urging caution. I think that's important to remember.
Also, McGovern lost the '72 election because of his own failed campaign as well, not because of anything Nixon's thugs "hacked" from the DNC HQ. So Clinton's failure as an effective campaigner doesn't change the fact that a serious crime was committed here, even if it didn't have an obvious impact on the outcome in such a direct way.
Sure, Clinton ran a lousy campaign (lousy enough to get her 2.6 mil more votes than the "victor"), but until we can completely rule out that the Russian interference played no part, and based on the unanimity of the intelligence agencies, I'm going to trust our intel community on this one.
NOTE: Breaking (Friday, 12/17) is the WaPo story that the FBI director AGREES with the assessment that Russia intervened to help Trump.
"Ellison is substantially to Clinton’s left and those factory workers in Youngstown know that he is their champion."
I love Ellison, but as someone with a pretty good understanding of the Mahoning Valley, let's just take a deep breath for a moment and understand a few things about this area:
1) Clinton won the city of Youngstown, and the county in which it exists - Mahoning.
2) Mahoning Co. is a Democratic party stronghold, and the Dem leadership here supported Hillary over Bernie. The leadership here has strong ties to the party elites. (NOTE: Tim Ryan,separate of his attempt to unseat Pelosi, has always been a supporter of the Dem party elites, and keep in mind, he's from Trumbull County, which borders Mahoning Co. to the North, so he's not a native of Youngstown, even though he represents it.)
3) While you could be correct that Youngstown and Mahoning Co might support Ellison (as well as the county bordering Mahoning to the North - Trumbull), that's not necessarily the case in the rural counties surrounding Mahoning, places like Columbiana or Jefferson Counties, which are Republican strongholds, and went heavily for Trump.
Think of Youngstown & Mahoning Co as a tiny blip of blue in a large red state. (Stark [Akron] & Cuyahoga [Cleveland] counties are similar.)
Ellison isn't a known quantity here yet, and given how successful Trump was, and will continue to be, of demonizing Muslims, I can't see how his supporters would go for Ellison.
It's more than the CIA, it's the collective determination of the intelligence community that this happened.
There was/is legitimate skepticism post-Iraq war over US intel capabilities and motivations. But to dismiss every conclusion they've come to since 2003 is sheer lunacy.
It's not Hillary supporters who are spreading lies like pizzagate, it's primarily Trump supporters. Sorry, but that's a fact.
It's no secret that right-leaning viewers of Fox News or Limbaugh listeners still believe that Iraq attacked the US on 9/11, so this is nothing new. So it's not surprising that recent studies show that Trump supporters believe lies like pizzagate.
The Watergate break in of 1972 also didn't have an impact on the defeat of McGovern, so whether or not the hack was effective is meaningless. What matters is that it happened, and that Trump and his surrogates are dismissing it, like Nixon and his staff and surrogates.
It's impossible for Wikileaks to determine the original source of the hacks simply because they don't have the resources that the US intel community does.
Also, a point not being considered: If it turns out that Russian actors also hacked the RNC and/or Trumps cyber communications, they are now in possession of potentially embarrasing/damaging information that could potentially be used against Trump and the RNC.
And if the reverse were true, if Clinton was the President-elect, would you be so quick to dismiss the potential for blackmail?
Prof. Cole, I get where you're coming from on this.
But I still wouldn't dismiss this issue.
I look at this as the cyber equivalent of Watergate, i.e. a "break in" just as egregious as the break in of the DNC headquarters then, the only differences being this was done electronically and committed by the party that wasn't in power at the time.
And given the very narrow margins of victory by Trump in certain areas, the effect from the bad publicity that was the result of this manufactured email scandal targeting the Clinton campaign cannot be denied as being a factor in the final weeks.
Remember, facts aren't important to Trump supporters, so even though there is no substance to the manufactured scandal, it really doesn't matter to people who believe lies like pizzagate, etc.
Also, recall that Obama wasn't really affected by his "guns & religion" remark which was a very elitist thing to say. Why didn't that affect him as much as Clinton's "basket of deplorables?"
The clincher for me is the breaking news of Trump's pick of the Exxon CEO for SoS. His ties to Putin cannot be dismissed, as well as Trump's and for those reasons, I find it very credible that the CIA's assessment is very accurate.
Basically, we're witnessing a corporate coup d'etat, specifically by and for the fossil fuel and financial elites, with Trump as the front man, and Russia in the background offering covert assistance.
This is downright frightening. Our democracy is now essentially the slow-boiled frog. We might have a very short window to jump out of the pot before it's too late.
Instead of brownshirts, we have the Red Hats.
Instead of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, we have #pizzagate or #spiritcooking.
Instead of kristallnacht, we have more incidents of hate speech plastered on mosques or churches or schools.
Instead of ovens and gas chambers, we have larger numbers of hate crimes, including this one, that, luckily, didn't take any lives.
This individual could have easily slaughtered most of the people in that restaurant.
Would that have been enough for the MSM to show the slightest hint of outrage?
Would Anderson Cooper have been crying at the scene of that crime?
What's it going to take for this madness to be confronted by the very institution that is tasked with doing so???
Is it going to take a mass shooting by a Trump supporter, or someone who actually believes this insanity, for the MSM to "speak truth to power???"
Instead, the Bannons and Flynn's are normalized as the Sunday morning pundits turn to more important issues like, is Romney or Huntsman more qualified to be SoS?
Sometimes, there are simply no words adequate enough.
Thank you, Prof. Cole, for being one of the few voices in the wilderness...
Welcome to the "Post-Truth Age."
Although this is not necessarily something new, especially when it comes to the US. The Vietnam war was based on a now discredited conspiracy theory - the Domino Theory.
And the real danger here is how the actual truth is obscured by these dangerous theories. They act to suck the oxygen out of the room, as people devote so much time and effort supporting or debunking them.
9/11 is the perfect example.
The Truthers believe it was an inside job, or, at the very least, the US government knew of the plot, but did nothing to stop it. The real conspiracy - something that existed, for the most part, in the open for all to see - was the decades long "conspiracy" by the West to control the Middle East supply of energy. This included overthrowing unsympathetic governments and installing pro-US dictators, along with the hot wars of recent years. Add to that the US support for Israel's policy to deny the Palestinians their rightful homeland, the military and economic support of the brutal Saudi regime and you end up with the hatred that resulted in the attacks of 9/11.
And the same can be seen with this latest election.
Conspiracies about hacked voting machines and millions of undocumented voters obscure the fact that the Republicans have "conspired" to deny minority, mostly African American voters, the right to vote in many GOP-controlled states. They do this through gerrymandering, by denying former felons the right to vote, even though they've served their sentences, or by purging the voter rolls by making purge lists of people - again, mostly black - who share the same name, and who they claim voted more than once in different states. This is what happened in Ohio.
And once again, these facts are lost or obscured as the media focuses on the ridiculous conspiracy theories about voter fraud.
Only time will tell whether or not more serious events occur because of this post-truth world we find ourselves in. I don't know how we're going to extricate ourselves from this collective, mass-induced brain fog of propaganda,disinformation, and outright lies...
I live in a NE Ohio "Rust Belt" city.
There is a well-established "grow local" movement here, as well as larger numbers of folks who have their own gardens and we have built a number of neighborhood gardens as well. Solar is still too expensive for the people in my neighborhood, and I live in what was historically the "wealthier" (read: whiter) side of town. But some of us collect rain water, compost on a regular basis, and we have curbside recycling pickup. (I've even built a grey water recycling system which captures my laundry wash water for toilet flushing, and the cleaner rinse water for the next wash cycle.)
So far, city government has allowed rainwater catchment, but I've heard of other municipalities inexplicably ban it. A growing issue for an already financially stressed citizenry like ours is the increasing water/wastewater bill. The USEPA has mandated sewer infrastructure improvements, but have allowed a 30yr time frame for completion. But the bulk of the cost is on everyday consumers here, and the city is trying to offset this. We only have to look at Flint to realize how important an environmentally safe water system is, and this is how a federally-funded public infrastructure project would help a city like ours. (Trump's plan would be a privately run, "disaster crony- capitalism" project.)
Also, our city provides tire and electronics recycling at least twice a year, but it's always quite depressing to see the enormous piles of refuse that can appear on just about every street, especially as more homes are boarded up, and the contents removed. We have a tremendous number of homes slated for demolition, but there was no planning for the waste stream that's been created.
More local businesses - restaurants, hospital, etc - are buying more locally grown produce. But most of the city is a "food desert." A large chain recently closed it's stores, creating a problem for city residents who are now forced to travel to the suburbs for food. Those who can't rely on the food bank, or resort to the unhealthy choices offered at small convenience stores.
Sorry to digress, but my point is to show that even though most of us cannot afford higher tech options for going green, we're still trying within our means to contribute. Native Americans have taught us the lesson of Seven Generations, and we're trying to teach our younger generation here to think long term about the consequences of their actions.
"Then there were his hysterical shouts of Heil! at the end of his speech, which rather give the show away."
...and the Nazi salutes. But they're not neo-Nazis, they're simply the "alternative right." Thank you, mainstream media.
Spencer is also much more charismatic than David Duke. He's only 38, and he's from - wait for it - Boston Mass., which makes him even more attractive to Midwesterners and Northerners because he doesn't come across like a Southern racist.
And then there was the inexcusable sight of high profile MSM personalities marching up to Trump's "Berghof" as if summoned to be scolded for their negative coverage of Trump during the campaign - coverage that gave Trump $millions in free publicity.
Juan, do you have anything more on this latest incident?
I think many of us are asking ourselves, "Is this really happening in the US in 2016?"
Because if there's one thing we've learned from the history of oppression, it's that those who are oppressed never act in their own self interest by cooperating with their oppressors.
That never happens.
Slaves never cooperated with their masters - "Uncle Tom" is a leftist concoction - they never existed. As well as "Buffalo Soldiers," also a fabrication.
Native Americans never worked with the US Cavalry in the extermination of the Native Americans.
Minority police officers have never abused other minorities.
Minority soldiers never commit atrocities against the brown or yellow inhabitants of the countries the US invades.
South Vietnamese never worked with the Unites States to murder NLF (South Vietnamese) cadres.
Iraqis and Afghanis have never cooperated with US occupation forces.
Palestinians have never spied on other Palestinians for Israel.
Abused women always leave after the initial abuse. They never stay with their abuser...
How to explain Kushner?
It's completely consistent with the support for Israel by the right wing, Christian supremacist movement represented by Pence, et al, which sees Israel as a temporary impediment to the inevitable return of Jesus. Once Jesus returns, Jews will be converted (or else), and Israel will once again be the center of Christianity.
First, thanks for a very powerful expose' in Bannon, the best I've read so far.
Second, as with all demagogues, there is always a tiny kernel of truth tucked into their arguments. So is the case with Trump and Bannon:
"Corporations are sitting almost on a $1 trillion of cash and they’re not reinvesting in America."
And who can argue with that? And that's the key - they always make sure to include a seemingly progressive populist message that they can point to and say, "See, here's where we agree with...," in this case, a Bernie Sanders.
And this is how this very dangerous process of normalization begins, as we're now witnessing. For some inexplicable reason, Obama insists on doing his best von Hindenburg, using every opportunity he can to chide us all into giving "Trump a chance!" (as John and George roll over in their graves.)
Recall also that Hitler pushed through an infrastructure works program as well, which, along with the massive increase in military spending, increased Germany's deficit at the time.
(Well, Juan, I guess you've convinced me that the fascist comparisons are apropos after all.)
Finally, I know this sounds completely counter-intuitive, but it may turn out that the only candidate that could beat Trump in 2020 is a fiscally conservative deficit hawk, NOT a progressive populist like Warren or Bernie. That's if Trump follows the same sort of massive deficit spending course that Hitler did.
Another of the insane bits of irony we've witnessed of late, eh?
This meme of wearing a safety pin to show solidarity with the oppressed is brilliant, and I hope it spreads.
With the appointment of the alt-right leader Bannon as one of Trump's top advisors, it's clear that Trump has negated any feeble call on the Red Hats to "stop it."
I shudder at the thought of what will happen after the next domestic terror incident, especially if it occurs on one of our college campuses.
But what is even more dangerous and alarming is this ongoing normalization process that we're witnessing from within the MSM and political establishment. Even Sanders and Warren have made conciliatory statements about the possibility of actually working with this monster.
Contrast this with how the Republicans responded immediately after Obama's election with vows to, at the very least, cripple his Presidency, which they effectively did.
I hesitate to make comparisons to fascism, but this normalization process is what is required for a totalitarian force to maintain its power.
It's got to stop. This regime needs to be resisted, exposed, shamed and finally ignored. Trump needs to be shouted down at every opportunity, and it's got to be the Democrats, at least the progressive wing, that needs to lead this effort, or else they will be marginalized for a generation.
It's amazing how only weeks ago the elites were lamenting the destruction of the GOP, and asking how it could possibly recover from this debacle...
(NOTE: If you're looking for a silver lining, the rejection of Obamacare by the Red Hats is an unwitting rejection of neoliberal economic policy. Recall that the ACA was concocted by the Heritage Foundation, and embraced by Romney in Mass.. So that's a bit of a positive, I guess.)
I just wanted to add that David's description of Trump is, by far, the best that I've found after reading hundreds of articles on him this past year. You can't help but notice that this man never laughs! What does that say about this person's psyche? And Alan is right - we need to wake up. The time to mourn is over...
At least the Egyptians can say that their elections, no matter how rigged (where have we heard that one before?), end with the person with the most votes being the "winner." (I'm sure the Muslim Brotherhood have a different opinion on that.)
For the 2nd time in 16 yrs, that's not the case in the United States.
The last time I felt this way, another candidate with more votes than his opponent also lost the election. I remember the pit in my stomach during that transition while watching as the neocons assume power and the stark realization that something horrible was about to happen under their rule. Today, Trump's people make W's seem moderate by comparison. (Wow, did we ever think we'd be pining for the likes of Brent Scowcroft and Tom Ridge?)
I hesitate to make comparisons to fascism, because I don't think we're that far down the abyss quite yet. But we've definitely jumped the shark like never in our history. Imagine hearing the Nixon tapes in 1971, with all his hate and anti-Semitism there in black & white, and then witnessing him being re-elected in 1972. That might be an apt comparison.
I don't think we'll see concentration camps, although we might see "detention centers" for Muslims and the undocumented. I don't think we'll see brownshirts, instead, we'll see more random, unorganized acts of hate crimes by "red hats." I don't think we'll see COINTELPRO again...okay, maybe COINTELPRO-lite, if that's any consolation. Either way, it's not a pretty picture...
PS, this is not meant to embarrass you, but I did bookmark a certain article of yours. Obviously, you weren't alone in misjudging this election. I only hoped that you were right...
I'm still waiting for the Watergate-like headline here, you know, something that will continue to resonate in 40 yrs:
"Clinton Uses Unsecure Email Server!"
Wow. Devastating.
Right up there with breaking into the offices of your political opponent, or the office of a whistleblowers' shrink, or using the IRS and CIA to attack your political opponents as you commit real, actual "high crimes."
Did Clinton sell state secrets to a foreign entity?
Did she commit treason by handing over the blueprints for the next generation fighter plane?
Did she purposely do anything remotely close to even a hint of a high crime or misdemeanor?
Benghazi?
Poor George Shultz, wondering why he wasn't given the same sort of credit for the Marine barracks bombing in Oct. 1983 that killed hundreds of US Marines.
Gee, I'm not quite sure, but I think just maybe Clinton wasn't the President when Benghazi occurred, accepting the notion that it was more than another unpredictable blindside, sorta like Pearl Harbor and 9/11.
Oh, and the buck stops at the Secretary of State.
So basically, what we have is a high crime that isn't, i.e. another Fox News Clinton "scandal" that the MSM runs with in order to appear really fair & balanced, while actually taking the bait and helping to make another mountain out of a molehill.
I'm with Bill Maher on this one: there is no equivalency here.
Trump is a self-serving, egotistical and narcissistic predator.
Clinton is a life-long bureaucrat.
If that's the choice, I'll stick with the bureaucrat.
Once again, Chomsky and Herman are vindicated as their theory of how the US media self-censors is again proven by comparing coverage of 2 wars: the Syrian War, and the US-backed Saudi War against Yemen.
The worthy victims being the Syrians, as bloodied children are an almost daily and nightly fixture of print reports and TV newscasts. These victims are "worthy" of our sympathy because they're the victims of the official enemies - in this case, Assad and Putin.
The bloodied Yemeni children are not covered by the MSM. These "unworthy" victims are the victims of official US allies - Saudi Arabia, Jordan, etc. Plus, they're being slaughtered by weapons being provided by the US and UK.
Chomsky and Herman should be applauded for giving us an essentially fool proof propaganda model that has been substantiated over and over ever since they first proposed it in the book "Manufacturing Consent."
The numbers even out a bit more if you count the number of people killed by extremists on US soil since 2001. The total is 93, 45 by Muslim extremists, 48 by Christian or right wing extremists:
Unless, of course, one of these 2 candidates is engaging in pandering, and simply positioning herself to the right as a tactic, not an actual intention, while the other one actually believes what he says. I'm hoping it's the former, and I'm willing to take that chance. Again, it's the difference between a centrist corporatist, and the leader of American Fascism.
I agree that in whatever form American fascism takes, it will look nothing like Germany or Italy or Argentina, and that it will be uniquely American in nature.
As Robert Paxson points out, Trump is a capitalist, while Hitler & Mussolini were "socialist," however bastardized and warped their interpretation of socialism was. Their fascism was "for the greater good," while Trump's would be individualistic and, therefore, fragmented.
I don't believe we'll see anything like a "Trump 2nd Amendment Society," but I do agree that Trumpery will be based on a highly weaponized group of supporters who will not have to be directed. Trump will inevitably condone violence against protesters as merely "defensive" and reactionary, and this will spurn his supporters on to suppress various movements such as #BLM.
Trumpery will not build concentration camps, however, we'll probably see a number of "detainment centers" for the undocumented, along the lines of Abu Graib or Gitmo-style camps, with similar violations of rights, along with a new torture regime rubber-stamped by a compliant and intimidated Congress.
There won't be any Kristallnacht's, but there will be a surge in random hate crimes committed against Muslims, LGBTGs and, of course, African Americans.
Just try to wrap your head around this for a moment:
The likely nominee of 1 of the 2 major parties in this country is inciting people to violence on an almost daily basis. When has this ever happened in the post-Civil War history of this nation? (Remember, George Wallace ran as an independent.)
As if this isn't serious enough, there's something else even more chilling that has yet to happen:
Where is the image of a large, bipartisan group of at least 400 US Representatives and Senators - Democrats AND Republicans - standing on the steps of the US capital building, calling out Donald Trump as a dangerous, race-baiting, xenophobic, and unhinged individual who has disqualified himself from the office, and demanding that he immediately withdraw from the Presidential race?
Where is that video?
The fact that this has yet to happen tells us more about how quickly fascism can grow and sweep across this nation than anything Donald Trump is saying or doing.
You actually make a valid point, and it explains the reason why the US refuses to label people like Roof and Dear "terrorists.
The US targeted Anwar al-Awlaki - a US citizen - solely for his alleged inspirational, or influenctial role in acts of terror. There's no evidence that he was directly involved in a single act of violence. If the US were to determine that Dear and Roof were "terrorists," then the law requires that those who influenced them must also be considered "an imminent threat." According to the al-Awlaki memo, this would involve the US targeted assassinations of the leaders of the pro-life movement, neo-nazi groups, and numerous members of the US Congress who have demonized Planned Parenthood.
What's good for the goose is good for the gander, right?
Yesterday, Nov. 21, a #BlackLivesMatter protester was kicked out of a Trump rally at the direction of Trump himself. This individual was also struck by attendees. In a Fox News interview this morning, Trump said the protester "...should have been roughed up..."
This is the closest we've come to fascism in my lifetime (40+ yrs). My question is, does this compare to the "Red Scare" era, or does this have the potential to become even worse?
The idea that Iran would commit mass suicide by using a nuke on Israel is laughable. The reason whey Israel & the US oppose an Iranian nuke is precisely why the US and Israel maintain their nuclear stockpiles - for deterrence. Iran has every right to have that weapon for deterrence, given the threats Israel has made over the last decade. Unless, of course, Israel decides to agree to a nuke-free region, then that could act as a powerful impetus for an agreement.
The US has supported the violent overthrow of _legitimately elected_ officials in Egypt, Venezuela, and now Ukraine.
One has to wonder at what point will everything be to Washington's liking? After only 6 more coups? Maybe 13 more? Or more likely, this will never end?
Of course the Yanukovych opposition had many legitimate grievances. But imagine if the US insisted on elections to change unpopular leadership, instead of supporting violent insurrections? Oh, wait...that might mean they'd have to be consistent...sorry.
Mikhail Margelov, who is the Russian equivalent of the Chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was just interviewed on RT News.
His comments were very unequivocal, that Russia is operating on the assumption that previous agreements maintaining the Black Sea Fleet at Sevastopol signed by the then "legitimate authorities" from Ukraine are still in effect. He said he sees no reason for Russia to send additional troops, since they're "already there."
He also explained that the fleet will eventually leave Sevastopol for a yet to be completed port on the Russian coastline.
He pointed out what a large melting pot Ukraine is, especially the Eastern area, and how horrific it would be if Right Sector extremists were to continue to grow, with support from political figures. He cautioned that anti-Semitism is growing within the anti-Yanukovych movement.
Right off the bat, it's up to Iran, the burden is on Iran, Iran should capitulate, it's all Iran's fault, etc., instead of:
"1. Since the US overthrew the elected government of Iran 60yrs ago, the US has no right to continue threatening and punishing Iran, and, instead, must call for the lifting of all sanctions, and begin an immediate policy of reparations for supporting the brutal dictatorship that followed the US-orchestrated 1953 subversion of Iranian democracy."
"2. Once the previous steps are taken, the US must call for a nuclear free Middle East which would require Israel to take the first step by destroying its WMD."
Of course, this will never happen, but everyone except Western neoliberal foreign policy ideologues know this would be the morally correct stance.
Joe from Lowell, the problem with your analysis is that if we agree that US consumption of fossil fuels has dropped, and this decrease equals less "transportation emissions," we also have to acknowledge that this is offset by the increased emissions from the massive increase in domestic drilling.
Fracking increases not only methane emissions from leakage and other release mechanisms, but there is flaring, the massive increase in trucking for water, flowback disposal, and the huge amount of emissions from pump generators. Pipeline ruptures/leaks are increasing, and there are proposals for increasing storage pools for disposal of frack fluids, as injection well disposal is causing ever greater problems, including earthquakes from both waste disposal AND oil and gas extraction.
So while there may be a decrease in domestic consumption, the massive increase in domestic production has offset any gains in that regard.
There are far too many studies showing this to list here, so try:
"But there’s this big thumping similarity: An enormous war machine, wanting, inter alia, the opportunity to test and deploy and use up various bits of inventory, and novel tactics..."
I wouldn't be too sure that the US only plans on targeting Assad's forces. Don't be surprised if certain rebel forces are also hit by US/NATO strikes, i.e. "The Fog of War?"
"I notice that Secretary Kerry didn’t say anything about the rebels. A series of punitive strikes to deter future chemical warfare attacks may provide some benefit to them, but it is not the same thing as joining up with the rebellion."
Don't be too sure that certain rebel forces will not be targeted by US military strikes..."Fog of War", etc...
"The violence used to destroy the crews that were raining rocket fire down on Misrata saved thousands of lives."
The violence used by NATO in Libya killed thousands of civilians, while empowering extremist elements including AQ...
"The violence used to dismantle al Qaeda has probably saved tens of thousands of lives."
The violence used to "dismantle" al Qaeda has also killed 100s of thousands of innocents in Afghanistan/Pakistan/and Iraq combined, while creating untold numbers of new enemies that will seek revenge and retribution for the foreseeable future...
"The violence used by the Vietnamese military to overthrow the Khmer Rouge saved hundreds of thousands of lives."
The violence used by the United States to slaughter millions of Vietnamese, including countless Cambodians via LBJ/Nixon's secret bombing campaign, gave rise to extremist elements such as the Khmer Rouge, therefore causing the deaths of millions of Cambodians...
What do the Mayors of Oakland, Berkeley, Denver, San Francisco, Austin, Portland OR, Nashville, St.Louis, Salt Lake City, Albany NY, Philadelphia, Youngstown OH, Burlington VT, Chapel Hill, Seattle, and Boston all have in common???
They are all DEMOCRATS who are all attacking their respective Occupations in one form or another!
What does that tell us? That it's being orchestrated from DC by the Justice Department, which is part of the Executive Branch of the US Government!
Democrats, from the New Deal, on through the 60s (Chicago '68), continuing through the 90s (Seattle), up until now, have always been a greater threat to real, revolutionary change.
WHY?
Because they cannot allow their power to be threatened _from the LEFT_, which constitutes a _greater_ threat to their power and their ideology! In other words, there's nothing a liberal hates more than a leftist who calls her/him out for sharing responsibility for the creation and maintenance of the plutocratic, bipartisan war party that runs this nation...
Professor Cole once again only gives you part of the story - the part that supports his case.
What he conveniently omits are the overtly belligerent statements from Obama administration officials - including Obama himself - in the wake of the as yet unproven "Iranian Assassination Plot."
That entire episode, of course, reveals Obama's aversion to "adventurism," i.e., make accusations that can be interpreted as accusing Iran of an act of war, without showing a single verifiable piece of evidence.
I have no doubt that Professor Cole is correct about one thing: Obama will not sanction an attack until after the election, not because of some aversion to adventurism, but for base political considerations.
ROME, April 4 (Reuters) - The head of Italian oil group Eni Paolo Scaroni has discussed energy cooperation with the Libyan rebel movement in Benghazi in recent days, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said on Monday.
Nothing personal about your physical abilities and courage, which I do not question, Mr. Cole, but I won't address the ridiculous notion of a middle-aged college professor trotting off to join the latest Kinetic Military Action, a.k.a. - The Odyssey.
I will say that I think it was a real cheap shot by Greenwald to go there. Contrary to his empty reasoning, it was adolescent and rhetorical. I just wish Glenn would use this opportunity to confront you on your blatant double standard by addressing the substance of your position, something Greenwald is much better equipped to do than this game, but admitted, amateur.
But, what the hell, I'll keep trying.
Greenwald did link to the DN debate in which you made these truly disappointing series of statements:
But to compare tiny Bahrain, where there has been some violence against protesters, to Libya, where there was a national popular uprising and where, in Libya, thousands are dead, not 20, it’s just not on the same scale.
And the other thing is, you know, let us be practical, let us be pragmatic. We are people of the left. We care about the ordinary people. We care about workers. We care about the aspirations of the people, and the United States should certainly be putting pressure on the Bahrain monarchy to accommodate them. And in fact, the U.S. has put pressure on it, to the extent that the Saudi government is furious with the United States. I mean, we’re saying it’s not doing enough. The reactionary forces in the Gulf are angry that we’re doing too much. And however, you know, a military intervention in Bahrain is not a practical option, and I cannot see in what way it could even have any hope of success. The Bahraini protesters themselves would object to a direct U.S. or NATO military intervention in Bahrain.
In Libya, the people asked for this intervention: they asked for a no-fly zone. And I would be the first to admit that this is going beyond a no-fly zone. There’s also a no-drive zone.
20, 200, 2000, who's counting?!
Except that in "tiny Bahrain," there is ample evidence that it was much more than 20. There is ample evidence that Bahraini and Saudi forces have attacked hospitals, their staff, and the wounded. There is ample evidence coming out of the pro-democracy movement from their websites, through videos, tweets, and every other form of communication that, in fact, there is massive outrage that there is a double standard, that the U.S. has allowed this to happen, and has done nothing to stop the atrocities, especially with regard to the Saudi invasion, which is being portrayed as a "regional intervention," in fine Orwellian terms.
What is your evidence, Mr. Cole, that the pro-d movement in Bahrain never asked for US intervention, and what is your evidence that they would object to it? By demanding that the U.S. use its influence to stop the Bahrain regime? When has a "humanitarian" intervention ever been predicated by a request by the victims? Were the cries for intervention from the victims in Rwanda or, today, the Ivory Coast not loud enough for you? Incredible, wild statements like this with absolutely no basis do nothing for your credibility. If the US wanted to stop the atrocities in Bahrain, there was no tactical or practical impediment to it - only geostrategic.
As far as your platitudes about the left and "caring about the ordinary people," well, I think you need to put an asterisk next to a statement like that and qualify it every time you make it.
How utterly shameful.
If you spent your energy demanding that your own country cease the atrocities it is either directly responsible for, or that its allies are committing, then your platitudes might have meaning.
Gbagbo has incurred the near universal condemnation and censure of the regional and international community. Western leaders, including U.S. president Barack Obama and French president Nicolas Sarkozy have congratulated Alassane Ouattara on his victory. The European Union has announced the possibility of targeted sanctions against individuals who obstruct the electoral process, and the World Bank has warned that continued intransigence will put development assistance flows at serious risk. UN secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon has recognized and endorsed the electoral commission’s announcement of Ouattara’s victory.
You couldn’t intervene in the Ivory Coast effectively with some aerial bombings of tanks. Some interventions are more practical than others. - Mr. Cole
Is that so, Mr. Cole?
Except that the bombing campaign in Libya is targeting more than just tanks. "Command and control," "communications," not to mention a blockade to stop arms flow to Qaddafi. And now we're being told the air campaign will enter a new phase, of more targeted bombing using close-support, tactical weaponry - A-10s, C-130s, etc.
Please tell us, which of these cannot be applied to the IC, and why?
And what precisely do you think would cause more harm to an underdeveloped country like IC? A precision bombing campaign that would only last "days, not weeks," or a long, drawn-out sanctions regime that would essentially strangulate an already desperate population?
An internationally recognized free and fair election has been violently overturned in a Sub-Saharan nation. There are reports of horrific atrocities being committed by pro-Gbagbo forces - these 2 facts arguably making the crises even worse than in Libya.
But somehow, it's not practical to intervene in the Ivory Coast. Just like in the 90s, Liberal Interventionism doesn't seem to apply to sub-Saharan Africa. There are no alleged rapes of pro-democracy movement women being highlighted round-the-clock in the Western press. No Pro-interventionism liberal pundits are calling for a NFZ there. Not even a blockade is practical in the eyes of certain liberal interventionists.
Bahrain, Yemen, and the Ivory Coast will just have to learn the limitations of pragmatism.
President Barack Obama in his Monday evening address to the nation on Libya outlined an effort of limitations. The US could not intervene everywhere, but it could intervene to good effect here.
The Bahrain and Yemen pro-democracy movements thank you and President Obama for your pragmatism.
After all, it would not have been "to good effect" for Secretary Gates to threaten the Saudi regime with a massive bombing campaign if they dared to send tanks across the King Fahd Causeway into Bahrain. And so the tanks rolled in only days after Gates left the area, and the violent crackdown ensued, including attacks on hospitals and doctors and nurses - atrocities that Mr. Cole finds so vile when committed by the Libyan authorities.
Despite the close and elegant moral reasoning tempered by a steady pragmatism, the speech was full of genuine feeling, including empathy and outrage. It strikes me as among the better speeches President Obama has given since taking office.
There's that term "pragmatism" again.
When it was Nixon or Reagan or the Bush's spouting such Orwellian doublespeak, the Left rightfully and accurately labeled it as such. Not so when it's a Democrat spewing the identical propaganda. Could we fill a million column inches with all of the former Presidents who expressed "genuine feeling, including empathy and outrage" as they bombed another Third World nation into the Stone Age?
Obama has already proven himself a liar when he said it would only be a matter of "days, not weeks."
The rest of Cole's article is simply a resort to partisanship, which really shows either how desperate or pathetic he's become. It's the fallback position, I guess...
"I can still remember when I was a teenager how disappointed I was that Soviet tanks were allowed to put down the Prague Spring and extirpate socialism with a human face." - Juan Cole
Saudi tanks rolling into Bahrain to crush the pro-democracy movement there didn't seem to matter or motivate Cole to call for Western intervention. (The fact that the U.S. is in fact, intervening to _support_ the regimes also doesn't seem to outrage Cole.) In fact, it didn't motivate him to call for a NFZ either.
There's a reason Cole doesn't directly mention Bahrain and Yemen. Like Hillary Clinton this morning on Face the Nation, he seems to think intervention is more worthy in Libya because the scale of oppression is much larger.
The humanitarian situation in Libya was fairly unique. You had a set of tank brigades willing to attack dissidents
The problem with this is, of course, that the violent suppression of freedom movements in Bahrain and Yemen occurred PRIOR to the uprising in Libya. An accurate chronology can complicate things for the liberal interventionism crowd. (I remember when the term "Liberal Interventionism" was considered an oxymoron.)
Cole, therefore, has to answer why he was so opposed to intervention in those cases, but so in favor now? Especially knowing full well that the U.S. is deeply entwined in both countries, and, therefore, had a more propitious set of circumstances to intervene in a much more powerful and less violent way to stop the atrocities.
This simple fact is why his article has no credibility.
Here's the link:
In a speech drafted by his hard-line policy adviser, Stephen Miller, Mr. Trump plans to challenge the world to do more to counter threats from Iran and North Korea.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/18/world/americas/trump-united-nations.html
When I first heard this madman's speech, it felt less like serious ideological policy crafted by hard line, experienced neocons, and more like the words of a 16yr old young republican male feeling his political oats for the very first time after hearing a Barry Goldwater speech.
Turns out, none other than our favorite young Red Hat (as opposed to Hitler's young brownshirts), Stephen Miller, was the author. This explains the adolescent absurdity of it all.
Oh, and the President of the United States just announced, at the United Nations, his intention to carry out the biggest crime against humanity since the Holocaust.
Other than that, it was a nice speech by a 16yr old young republican...
!
And that's the problem with "Clintonism," e.g. neoliberalism - you have to be able to stand firm, even if it means shutting down the government. In which case, you need to communicate with the American people more effectively.
!!!
And what is the one thing - thanks to Congressional malfeasance - that he can do that the courts and Congress cannot stop?
We'll either be at war with Iran or N. Korea sometime late next year...
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I think you're on to something, and it is something that has been on my mind for a while now.
I think we're looking at this in the wrong way.
Yes, there are elements of fascism in Trumpism, but, as you stated, I think there is also an element of anarchy - an anarchy that could partially explain the obsession with Russia by the Trumpists, with its roots being in 19th century Russian anarchism/socialism.
Let's call this "anarcho-fascist Trumpism."
Of course Trump doesn't have the intellect to formulate or interpret any of this, but I think someone in his sphere is quite enamored of Russian history vis-a-vis the methods of revolutionary transformation.
Trumpism as a "People's Will" movement, more concerned with nihilism and chaos than with any coherent political ideology. Instead of the two-headed Goebbels, Bannon and Miller are more aligned with a Bakunin and/or a Nechaev.
The former pushing an economically neoliberal populism, while the latter a socialistic populism - both of which were doomed to failure because of their authoritarian underpinnings.
Obviously, this is not a perfect comparison, and I only offer it as a starting point in the alternative to the "Trumpism as Nazism" premise.
It's late Sunday night, and I'm a bit punchy, so feel free to dismiss or just laugh off.
I'll probably do the same in the a.m...LOL
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This is Trump's latest tweet, approx 5PM EST, Friday, Feb. 17.
I post this because it underlines what you've written, Juan.
This is not funny anymore, not that it ever was.
This man is mad.
This is dangerous.
What happens when a prominent media figure is assassinated?
Or when a pipe bomb detonates at a MSM outlet, either print or TV (since radio is pretty much under fascist control)?
None of his tweets - however insane they've been - have given me chills like this one has:
Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump 1h1 hour ago
The FAKE NEWS media (failing @nytimes, @NBCNews, @ABC, @CBS, @CNN) is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American People!
29,204 replies 14,303 retweets 42,046 likes
???
So then today's Palestinians have a more legitimate claim to being the rightful heirs/inhabitants of not only Palestine, but of a Jewish state.
Another one of the sickening ironies in this entire, colossal flustercuck.
!!!
You've listed a few possible motives here, and I'd just like to add one more.
It's no secret that Trump has gone bankrupt a number of times. It's very probable that because of this, US financial institutions refused to extend him any more credit. So where is a broke "billionaire" to go for an infusion of cash?
You got it: Vladimir's Savings & Loan, LLC, i.e. Russian banks and/or oligarchs.
My guess is that knowing the extent of his connections to these people, it was too tempting to refuse, and, naturally, this was something to be done off the books and under the table, so it wouldn't be something that would be recorded on his tax returns, although there may be some legitimate business dealings that might be embarrassing to him.
This would explain much of this, and I think that this is the heart of the issue, and explains his cozy relationship with Putin.
$$$
Why are you not booked on MSM or cable news shows?
I don't think I've ever seen you on any.
If you should be, please let us know asap.
What you write needs to be heard by the masses, if possible...
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I've been following media bias since FAIR put out their study showing how biased ABC's Nightline was by their history of using almost all white/male establishment guests. So we've known for a long time how unrepresentative the MSM has been, which completely destroys the right's claim of a liberal bias. So I agree with what you describe Joe, which is nothing short of a revolution to break up and to seize control of the MSM by putting it in the hands of the public, which supposedly owns it in the first place, right?!
But I do, however, want to point out that I've noticed that the CBS Evening News w/Scott Pelley is doing a pretty good job of calling out Trump and his administration on their lies and disinformation campaign. It's still not enough, though.
But, at least, there's that...
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"Trump on Monday continued to troll the world..."
HA! Classic line, Juan.
Here's what's really scary about Trump, the fact that he's relying on these tinfoil hat sources for his information, whether he reads/watches them directly, or is getting this indirectly from a Bannon.
He's doing the same with the murder rate statistics. He's lying about those as well, claiming the rate has risen over a 40 yr period, when, in fact, the opposite is the case. The rate peaked in 91-92, and has dropped ever since, with a slight rise over the past 2 yrs, and that's without factoring in US population growth over the past 40yrs!
When the POTUS rejects the facts gathered by his own law enforcement agencies, while believing the propaganda given to him by the likes of Bannon or, God forbid, an Alex Jones, then we know we're getting further and further down the rabbit hole...
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Great article...
xoxo
I should have put it this way:
"We all love our dogs. Hitler loved his dog. Is it now wrong to love our dogs?"
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I would just add that to agree with Joe's point IS NOT to be a Trump defender. It's not our problem that an egomaniacal narcissistic neo fascist racist might have one belief - if it is an actual belief - that might be consistent with the progressives!
We all want better jobs!
Hitler loved his dog!
Is it a bad thing I love dogs too???
!!!
Joe, no attack intended on you, and I apologize if it came across as that. This is a good, healthy debate, which is what I love about Juan's blog, how he allows us to do so in more detail and in a thoughtful, respectful way.
I think you make some great points!
Give cred where cred is due, even if it is Richard Nixon or Donald Trump! lol
When Trump makes a statement like he did, it really makes me wonder if maybe there's just a little hint of anti-imperialism beneath that thick skull of his. Of course that would be a good thing. But then he dashes any hope when we see his real imperial self as it manifests itself in his rhetoric on Iran, Mexico or North Korea, etc.
And that's always been the worry for me, not that he'll start something with a China, or a Russia, but with another weaker nation, like Iran.
But even if we do give Trump the benefit of the doubt in certain instances, we must never forget that it's within the context of his neo-fascist tendencies, that's all I'm trying to say, otherwise, we'll find ourselves normalizing him and his regime, both of which we need to continue to #resist.
I think we're on the same page in that regard...
thx,
e.
"What, do you think our country’s so innocent?”
This is the one honest thing he's said!
Joe, I get your points, and you've stated them well.
And I happen to agree that a good relationship with Russia isn't necessarily a bad thing, especially given the nuclear stakes.
Let's recall how when Nixon sought detente with the CCCP (wow, there's an old skool acronym), there was fairly universal bi-partisan support, even though Soviet repression & expansionism was a well known fact at the time.
I think the difference today is the context of the Russian interference & covert support of Trump, plus the questions about his business relationships in Russia. If we had found out that Nixon had similar relationships with a Brezhnev or a Kosygin, or that the Soviets had somehow tried to influence the '72 election in Nixon's favor, I think we'd question Nixon's motives just as we are doing today.
Under different circumstances, yes, "detente" with Russia today would be a good thing, but just not by this President.
PS Juan, I wish you wouldn't capitalize terms like neo-fascist or neo-nazi. I just think it gives more import to the terms, and even if it's just the small act of using lower case letters, even the smallest, symbolic bit of marginalization of these elements matters...
thx.
Mexico isn't a predominantly Muslim society, so the fact that it isn't on the list is more evidence that this is a religious-based discriminatory policy targeting only Muslim nations.
It was either incompetence or pressure from powerful business interests that forced these neofascists to not include Mexico, which would have helped their facile defense of this inhuman policy...
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Also, let's never forget how in 2011, the Norwegian white supremacist neo-nazi terrorist Anders Breivik slaughtered 77 innocent people, or how in 2015, American white supremacist Dylan Roof murdered 9 African Americans in a Charleston church, and now, just last night, 6 Muslims were massacred in a mosque in Ontario.
The fact that white, right wing Norwegians or Canadians aren't being targeted for "extreme vetting," or that white, neo-nazi American men are slated for expulsion tells you all you need to know about the nature of Trump and his fascist administration.
Over the past 10 yrs, the % of Americans murdered by Islamic extremists vs US-born, male, white supremacists is about the same...
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The "Rump Administration?" lol
?
But, wait!
Melania tapped a little-known Hispanic designer for her inaugural debut!
"Melania Trump on Thursday picked a little-known New York designer of Hispanic descent and daughter of a wounded veteran, for her first outfit celebrating husband Donald's presidential inauguration.
The choice of a knee-length, black coat from Norisol Ferrari for her visit to the Arlington National Cemetery was something of an inspired choice for Trump, who has been criticized in the past for favoring high-end European clothes."
http://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/style/melania-taps-little-known-hispanic-designer-for-inaugural-debut/ar-AAm2IZT?li=BBnb7Kz
"...there will be difficulty employing the military to facilitate strategic foreign policy objectives."
And this is bad how exactly?
😉
This isn't rocket science.
Russia's motive is clear:
The Western-imposed sanctions on Russia are seriously hurting Putin and much of the Russian oligarchy. Clinton was clear about maintaining these sanctions. Trump has indicated on numerous occasions his intent to have better relations with Russia, which could include the lifting of these crippling (by Russian oligarchical standards) sanctions.
Whether their attempts were successful or not, this was the motive for the Russian interference in the US Presidential election: it's all about the money. Only the details need to be sussed out...
On the refugee crises, it was Western interventionism - mostly led by the US - that created this problem in the first place! And now Trump and his neo-fascist surrogates (with support from a large % of Republicans) want to stop a measly 20k or so highly vetted refugees from coming to America.
Shameful doesn't even begin to describe...
$$$
The notion that the "secret government" along with "dark forces" are "plotting a coup against Trump" is laughable.
Trump represents the powerful economic and military elites in this country. A person who appoints more generals to his cabinet than any previous Presidents, and who has stocked his administration with Goldman Sachs executives, is hardly representative of a threat to the dark forces and secret government that may run the country.
His economic and military policies are precisely aligned with the interests of these powers, secret or not.
Unless the "secret government" and "dark forces" you describe are a bunch of socialists and pacifists, that would certainly be news to me, and most Americans familiar with US imperial history.
But thanks for the chuckle...
😉
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Wow.
This is all starting to make Nixon's backroom deal with S. Vietnam look like child's play...
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In art, you learn about "negative vs positive space."
The areas that you don't pay attention to, the empty spaces between figures or objects, are just as essential to the piece as the obvious and visible areas.
I.e., that which is not seen is just as important as that which is.
So we may never know what damaging information the Russians had on Trump which might have had a major impact on the election if it had been revealed.
That's the more serious aspect of this, at least, for me...
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"He does have one good idea about the hacking issue. Get off the web."
Maybe he should take his own advice then?
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Description
The U.S. Government confirms that two different RIS
actors participated in the intrusion into a U.S. political party. The first actor group, known as Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) 29, entered into the party’s systems in summer 2015, while the second, known as APT28, entered in spring 2016.
https://www.us-cert.gov/sites/default/files/publications/JAR_16-20296.pdf
What's astounding to me is how the "Tinfoil Hat Brigade," as you describe them, the Breitbarts, the Alex Jones's, etc - people who push wild conspiracy theories like The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, The Bilderbergs, ZOG, #pizzagate, or even that the moon landing was staged - how these people refuse to see the ACTUAL takeover of the US government by this band of Russian-influenced oligarchs, with Trump and his surrogates as the front men.
They only have to look at the daily headlines (assuming they believe them) to see it unfolding before their very eyes.
Instead, they'll rant on about the UN global conspiracy, all the while ignoring or dismissing the kakistocracy that we're now living under.
I'd recommend watching the films "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" or "Gas Light" to understand this mass psychosis.
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"Starting off as the most unpopular and distrusted Democratic nominee in modern times..."
...she now has nearly 3 million more votes than Trump.
What does that say about Trump's popularity compared to hers?
And so, given this context, the Russian break in of the DNC has a little more importance than to be dismissed outright, as Trump and his surrogates would like us to do.
Again, the '72 break in of the DNC didn't have much impact on the election, as McGovern was trounced by Nixon.
But we didn't dismiss the break in's seriousness because of that fact. And I believe it's just as legitimate to ask serious questions about what relationship the Trump campaign, or its surrogates, has with Russia, and any possible complicity by them with Russian actors. If true, then we're talking about another coverup, which is very apparent as Trump and his surrogates dismiss this as all fabricated. Even Nixon couldn't deny there was an actual break in. It was the coverup, and all other related "high crimes & misdemeanors," that ultimately destroyed his Presidency.
If this is all proven true, I'm not sure Trump could be charged and/or convicted since these crimes happened before he was elected. But if he continued a possible coverup after Jan. 20, then I'm fairly certain he could be impeached.
Time will tell....
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So, is Obama a willing or unwitting participant in this US intelligence anti-Putin disinformation campaign?
After all, he's taking the lead in pushing it.
The CIA and other intel agencies certainly deserve a great deal of skepticism from the American people, but that doesn't mean they should NEVER be believed, right?
They warned the Bush admin. of the imminent threat by Bin Laden and AQ, but it was Bush, et al that ignored the threat.
I don't think you're suggesting that.
Again, on Iraq, it was Bush and Cheney and Wolfowitz and Rumsfeld who were running their WMD disinformation effort out of the White House, while CIA analysts were urging caution. I think that's important to remember.
Also, McGovern lost the '72 election because of his own failed campaign as well, not because of anything Nixon's thugs "hacked" from the DNC HQ. So Clinton's failure as an effective campaigner doesn't change the fact that a serious crime was committed here, even if it didn't have an obvious impact on the outcome in such a direct way.
Sure, Clinton ran a lousy campaign (lousy enough to get her 2.6 mil more votes than the "victor"), but until we can completely rule out that the Russian interference played no part, and based on the unanimity of the intelligence agencies, I'm going to trust our intel community on this one.
NOTE: Breaking (Friday, 12/17) is the WaPo story that the FBI director AGREES with the assessment that Russia intervened to help Trump.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/clinton-blames-putins-personal-grudge-against-her-for-election-interference/2016/12/16/12f36250-c3be-11e6-8422-eac61c0ef74d_story.html?utm_term=.ed4bd5513c45
"Ellison is substantially to Clinton’s left and those factory workers in Youngstown know that he is their champion."
I love Ellison, but as someone with a pretty good understanding of the Mahoning Valley, let's just take a deep breath for a moment and understand a few things about this area:
1) Clinton won the city of Youngstown, and the county in which it exists - Mahoning.
2) Mahoning Co. is a Democratic party stronghold, and the Dem leadership here supported Hillary over Bernie. The leadership here has strong ties to the party elites. (NOTE: Tim Ryan,separate of his attempt to unseat Pelosi, has always been a supporter of the Dem party elites, and keep in mind, he's from Trumbull County, which borders Mahoning Co. to the North, so he's not a native of Youngstown, even though he represents it.)
3) While you could be correct that Youngstown and Mahoning Co might support Ellison (as well as the county bordering Mahoning to the North - Trumbull), that's not necessarily the case in the rural counties surrounding Mahoning, places like Columbiana or Jefferson Counties, which are Republican strongholds, and went heavily for Trump.
Think of Youngstown & Mahoning Co as a tiny blip of blue in a large red state. (Stark [Akron] & Cuyahoga [Cleveland] counties are similar.)
Ellison isn't a known quantity here yet, and given how successful Trump was, and will continue to be, of demonizing Muslims, I can't see how his supporters would go for Ellison.
But after 4 yrs of Trump, who knows, right?
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Faith in the American people?
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It's more than the CIA, it's the collective determination of the intelligence community that this happened.
There was/is legitimate skepticism post-Iraq war over US intel capabilities and motivations. But to dismiss every conclusion they've come to since 2003 is sheer lunacy.
It's not Hillary supporters who are spreading lies like pizzagate, it's primarily Trump supporters. Sorry, but that's a fact.
It's no secret that right-leaning viewers of Fox News or Limbaugh listeners still believe that Iraq attacked the US on 9/11, so this is nothing new. So it's not surprising that recent studies show that Trump supporters believe lies like pizzagate.
The Watergate break in of 1972 also didn't have an impact on the defeat of McGovern, so whether or not the hack was effective is meaningless. What matters is that it happened, and that Trump and his surrogates are dismissing it, like Nixon and his staff and surrogates.
It's impossible for Wikileaks to determine the original source of the hacks simply because they don't have the resources that the US intel community does.
Also, a point not being considered: If it turns out that Russian actors also hacked the RNC and/or Trumps cyber communications, they are now in possession of potentially embarrasing/damaging information that could potentially be used against Trump and the RNC.
And if the reverse were true, if Clinton was the President-elect, would you be so quick to dismiss the potential for blackmail?
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Prof. Cole, I get where you're coming from on this.
But I still wouldn't dismiss this issue.
I look at this as the cyber equivalent of Watergate, i.e. a "break in" just as egregious as the break in of the DNC headquarters then, the only differences being this was done electronically and committed by the party that wasn't in power at the time.
And given the very narrow margins of victory by Trump in certain areas, the effect from the bad publicity that was the result of this manufactured email scandal targeting the Clinton campaign cannot be denied as being a factor in the final weeks.
Remember, facts aren't important to Trump supporters, so even though there is no substance to the manufactured scandal, it really doesn't matter to people who believe lies like pizzagate, etc.
Also, recall that Obama wasn't really affected by his "guns & religion" remark which was a very elitist thing to say. Why didn't that affect him as much as Clinton's "basket of deplorables?"
The clincher for me is the breaking news of Trump's pick of the Exxon CEO for SoS. His ties to Putin cannot be dismissed, as well as Trump's and for those reasons, I find it very credible that the CIA's assessment is very accurate.
Basically, we're witnessing a corporate coup d'etat, specifically by and for the fossil fuel and financial elites, with Trump as the front man, and Russia in the background offering covert assistance.
This is downright frightening. Our democracy is now essentially the slow-boiled frog. We might have a very short window to jump out of the pot before it's too late.
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Can you ask him who wins the 2017 World Series?
I'd like to know what it's like to have a decent amount of money before I face extinction.
(Hey, sometimes you just gotta laugh, right?)
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Instead of brownshirts, we have the Red Hats.
Instead of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, we have #pizzagate or #spiritcooking.
Instead of kristallnacht, we have more incidents of hate speech plastered on mosques or churches or schools.
Instead of ovens and gas chambers, we have larger numbers of hate crimes, including this one, that, luckily, didn't take any lives.
This individual could have easily slaughtered most of the people in that restaurant.
Would that have been enough for the MSM to show the slightest hint of outrage?
Would Anderson Cooper have been crying at the scene of that crime?
What's it going to take for this madness to be confronted by the very institution that is tasked with doing so???
Is it going to take a mass shooting by a Trump supporter, or someone who actually believes this insanity, for the MSM to "speak truth to power???"
Instead, the Bannons and Flynn's are normalized as the Sunday morning pundits turn to more important issues like, is Romney or Huntsman more qualified to be SoS?
Sometimes, there are simply no words adequate enough.
Thank you, Prof. Cole, for being one of the few voices in the wilderness...
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"...and warned that military action couldn’t resolve the issue of Iran’s nuclear enrichment program."
And yet, the MSM keeps reporting that Mattis was relieved of his command during the Obama administration because of his "hard line" stance on Iraq.
So which is it?
He's a pragmatist, or a hawk on Iran, or both?
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Yes.
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Welcome to the "Post-Truth Age."
Although this is not necessarily something new, especially when it comes to the US. The Vietnam war was based on a now discredited conspiracy theory - the Domino Theory.
And the real danger here is how the actual truth is obscured by these dangerous theories. They act to suck the oxygen out of the room, as people devote so much time and effort supporting or debunking them.
9/11 is the perfect example.
The Truthers believe it was an inside job, or, at the very least, the US government knew of the plot, but did nothing to stop it. The real conspiracy - something that existed, for the most part, in the open for all to see - was the decades long "conspiracy" by the West to control the Middle East supply of energy. This included overthrowing unsympathetic governments and installing pro-US dictators, along with the hot wars of recent years. Add to that the US support for Israel's policy to deny the Palestinians their rightful homeland, the military and economic support of the brutal Saudi regime and you end up with the hatred that resulted in the attacks of 9/11.
And the same can be seen with this latest election.
Conspiracies about hacked voting machines and millions of undocumented voters obscure the fact that the Republicans have "conspired" to deny minority, mostly African American voters, the right to vote in many GOP-controlled states. They do this through gerrymandering, by denying former felons the right to vote, even though they've served their sentences, or by purging the voter rolls by making purge lists of people - again, mostly black - who share the same name, and who they claim voted more than once in different states. This is what happened in Ohio.
And once again, these facts are lost or obscured as the media focuses on the ridiculous conspiracy theories about voter fraud.
Only time will tell whether or not more serious events occur because of this post-truth world we find ourselves in. I don't know how we're going to extricate ourselves from this collective, mass-induced brain fog of propaganda,disinformation, and outright lies...
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Here's a sobering thought:
Imagine Trump and his administration in power during the Cuban Missile Crisis...
I live in a NE Ohio "Rust Belt" city.
There is a well-established "grow local" movement here, as well as larger numbers of folks who have their own gardens and we have built a number of neighborhood gardens as well. Solar is still too expensive for the people in my neighborhood, and I live in what was historically the "wealthier" (read: whiter) side of town. But some of us collect rain water, compost on a regular basis, and we have curbside recycling pickup. (I've even built a grey water recycling system which captures my laundry wash water for toilet flushing, and the cleaner rinse water for the next wash cycle.)
So far, city government has allowed rainwater catchment, but I've heard of other municipalities inexplicably ban it. A growing issue for an already financially stressed citizenry like ours is the increasing water/wastewater bill. The USEPA has mandated sewer infrastructure improvements, but have allowed a 30yr time frame for completion. But the bulk of the cost is on everyday consumers here, and the city is trying to offset this. We only have to look at Flint to realize how important an environmentally safe water system is, and this is how a federally-funded public infrastructure project would help a city like ours. (Trump's plan would be a privately run, "disaster crony- capitalism" project.)
Also, our city provides tire and electronics recycling at least twice a year, but it's always quite depressing to see the enormous piles of refuse that can appear on just about every street, especially as more homes are boarded up, and the contents removed. We have a tremendous number of homes slated for demolition, but there was no planning for the waste stream that's been created.
More local businesses - restaurants, hospital, etc - are buying more locally grown produce. But most of the city is a "food desert." A large chain recently closed it's stores, creating a problem for city residents who are now forced to travel to the suburbs for food. Those who can't rely on the food bank, or resort to the unhealthy choices offered at small convenience stores.
Sorry to digress, but my point is to show that even though most of us cannot afford higher tech options for going green, we're still trying within our means to contribute. Native Americans have taught us the lesson of Seven Generations, and we're trying to teach our younger generation here to think long term about the consequences of their actions.
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Gary, I'm afraid we've already heard the Red Hats' version: "Illegal Immigrant."
"Then there were his hysterical shouts of Heil! at the end of his speech, which rather give the show away."
...and the Nazi salutes. But they're not neo-Nazis, they're simply the "alternative right." Thank you, mainstream media.
Spencer is also much more charismatic than David Duke. He's only 38, and he's from - wait for it - Boston Mass., which makes him even more attractive to Midwesterners and Northerners because he doesn't come across like a Southern racist.
And then there was the inexcusable sight of high profile MSM personalities marching up to Trump's "Berghof" as if summoned to be scolded for their negative coverage of Trump during the campaign - coverage that gave Trump $millions in free publicity.
Juan, do you have anything more on this latest incident?
I think many of us are asking ourselves, "Is this really happening in the US in 2016?"
Because if there's one thing we've learned from the history of oppression, it's that those who are oppressed never act in their own self interest by cooperating with their oppressors.
That never happens.
Slaves never cooperated with their masters - "Uncle Tom" is a leftist concoction - they never existed. As well as "Buffalo Soldiers," also a fabrication.
Native Americans never worked with the US Cavalry in the extermination of the Native Americans.
Minority police officers have never abused other minorities.
Minority soldiers never commit atrocities against the brown or yellow inhabitants of the countries the US invades.
South Vietnamese never worked with the Unites States to murder NLF (South Vietnamese) cadres.
Iraqis and Afghanis have never cooperated with US occupation forces.
Palestinians have never spied on other Palestinians for Israel.
Abused women always leave after the initial abuse. They never stay with their abuser...
How to explain Kushner?
It's completely consistent with the support for Israel by the right wing, Christian supremacist movement represented by Pence, et al, which sees Israel as a temporary impediment to the inevitable return of Jesus. Once Jesus returns, Jews will be converted (or else), and Israel will once again be the center of Christianity.
First, thanks for a very powerful expose' in Bannon, the best I've read so far.
Second, as with all demagogues, there is always a tiny kernel of truth tucked into their arguments. So is the case with Trump and Bannon:
"Corporations are sitting almost on a $1 trillion of cash and they’re not reinvesting in America."
And who can argue with that? And that's the key - they always make sure to include a seemingly progressive populist message that they can point to and say, "See, here's where we agree with...," in this case, a Bernie Sanders.
And this is how this very dangerous process of normalization begins, as we're now witnessing. For some inexplicable reason, Obama insists on doing his best von Hindenburg, using every opportunity he can to chide us all into giving "Trump a chance!" (as John and George roll over in their graves.)
Recall also that Hitler pushed through an infrastructure works program as well, which, along with the massive increase in military spending, increased Germany's deficit at the time.
(Well, Juan, I guess you've convinced me that the fascist comparisons are apropos after all.)
Finally, I know this sounds completely counter-intuitive, but it may turn out that the only candidate that could beat Trump in 2020 is a fiscally conservative deficit hawk, NOT a progressive populist like Warren or Bernie. That's if Trump follows the same sort of massive deficit spending course that Hitler did.
Another of the insane bits of irony we've witnessed of late, eh?
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This meme of wearing a safety pin to show solidarity with the oppressed is brilliant, and I hope it spreads.
With the appointment of the alt-right leader Bannon as one of Trump's top advisors, it's clear that Trump has negated any feeble call on the Red Hats to "stop it."
I shudder at the thought of what will happen after the next domestic terror incident, especially if it occurs on one of our college campuses.
But what is even more dangerous and alarming is this ongoing normalization process that we're witnessing from within the MSM and political establishment. Even Sanders and Warren have made conciliatory statements about the possibility of actually working with this monster.
Contrast this with how the Republicans responded immediately after Obama's election with vows to, at the very least, cripple his Presidency, which they effectively did.
I hesitate to make comparisons to fascism, but this normalization process is what is required for a totalitarian force to maintain its power.
It's got to stop. This regime needs to be resisted, exposed, shamed and finally ignored. Trump needs to be shouted down at every opportunity, and it's got to be the Democrats, at least the progressive wing, that needs to lead this effort, or else they will be marginalized for a generation.
It's amazing how only weeks ago the elites were lamenting the destruction of the GOP, and asking how it could possibly recover from this debacle...
(NOTE: If you're looking for a silver lining, the rejection of Obamacare by the Red Hats is an unwitting rejection of neoliberal economic policy. Recall that the ACA was concocted by the Heritage Foundation, and embraced by Romney in Mass.. So that's a bit of a positive, I guess.)
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"_A friendless, cheerless sociopath_, Trump..."
I just wanted to add that David's description of Trump is, by far, the best that I've found after reading hundreds of articles on him this past year. You can't help but notice that this man never laughs! What does that say about this person's psyche? And Alan is right - we need to wake up. The time to mourn is over...
At least the Egyptians can say that their elections, no matter how rigged (where have we heard that one before?), end with the person with the most votes being the "winner." (I'm sure the Muslim Brotherhood have a different opinion on that.)
For the 2nd time in 16 yrs, that's not the case in the United States.
The last time I felt this way, another candidate with more votes than his opponent also lost the election. I remember the pit in my stomach during that transition while watching as the neocons assume power and the stark realization that something horrible was about to happen under their rule. Today, Trump's people make W's seem moderate by comparison. (Wow, did we ever think we'd be pining for the likes of Brent Scowcroft and Tom Ridge?)
I hesitate to make comparisons to fascism, because I don't think we're that far down the abyss quite yet. But we've definitely jumped the shark like never in our history. Imagine hearing the Nixon tapes in 1971, with all his hate and anti-Semitism there in black & white, and then witnessing him being re-elected in 1972. That might be an apt comparison.
I don't think we'll see concentration camps, although we might see "detention centers" for Muslims and the undocumented. I don't think we'll see brownshirts, instead, we'll see more random, unorganized acts of hate crimes by "red hats." I don't think we'll see COINTELPRO again...okay, maybe COINTELPRO-lite, if that's any consolation. Either way, it's not a pretty picture...
PS, this is not meant to embarrass you, but I did bookmark a certain article of yours. Obviously, you weren't alone in misjudging this election. I only hoped that you were right...
https://www.juancole.com/2016/05/pundits-suddenly-saying.html
...and Bill Clinton isn't running for President.
It's called "guilt by association."
I'm still waiting for the Watergate-like headline here, you know, something that will continue to resonate in 40 yrs:
"Clinton Uses Unsecure Email Server!"
Wow. Devastating.
Right up there with breaking into the offices of your political opponent, or the office of a whistleblowers' shrink, or using the IRS and CIA to attack your political opponents as you commit real, actual "high crimes."
Did Clinton sell state secrets to a foreign entity?
Did she commit treason by handing over the blueprints for the next generation fighter plane?
Did she purposely do anything remotely close to even a hint of a high crime or misdemeanor?
Benghazi?
Poor George Shultz, wondering why he wasn't given the same sort of credit for the Marine barracks bombing in Oct. 1983 that killed hundreds of US Marines.
Gee, I'm not quite sure, but I think just maybe Clinton wasn't the President when Benghazi occurred, accepting the notion that it was more than another unpredictable blindside, sorta like Pearl Harbor and 9/11.
Oh, and the buck stops at the Secretary of State.
So basically, what we have is a high crime that isn't, i.e. another Fox News Clinton "scandal" that the MSM runs with in order to appear really fair & balanced, while actually taking the bait and helping to make another mountain out of a molehill.
I'm with Bill Maher on this one: there is no equivalency here.
Trump is a self-serving, egotistical and narcissistic predator.
Clinton is a life-long bureaucrat.
If that's the choice, I'll stick with the bureaucrat.
Once again, Chomsky and Herman are vindicated as their theory of how the US media self-censors is again proven by comparing coverage of 2 wars: the Syrian War, and the US-backed Saudi War against Yemen.
The worthy victims being the Syrians, as bloodied children are an almost daily and nightly fixture of print reports and TV newscasts. These victims are "worthy" of our sympathy because they're the victims of the official enemies - in this case, Assad and Putin.
The bloodied Yemeni children are not covered by the MSM. These "unworthy" victims are the victims of official US allies - Saudi Arabia, Jordan, etc. Plus, they're being slaughtered by weapons being provided by the US and UK.
Chomsky and Herman should be applauded for giving us an essentially fool proof propaganda model that has been substantiated over and over ever since they first proposed it in the book "Manufacturing Consent."
The numbers even out a bit more if you count the number of people killed by extremists on US soil since 2001. The total is 93, 45 by Muslim extremists, 48 by Christian or right wing extremists:
http://securitydata.newamerica.net/extremists/deadly-attacks.html
Also, over 300 African Americans were killed by police in the US in 2015:
http://mappingpoliceviolence.org/
...while there has already been over 250 total Americans killed by the police in 2016:
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2015/jun/01/the-counted-police-killings-us-database#
Americans are more likely to be killed by their own police than by an extremist.
Unless, of course, one of these 2 candidates is engaging in pandering, and simply positioning herself to the right as a tactic, not an actual intention, while the other one actually believes what he says. I'm hoping it's the former, and I'm willing to take that chance. Again, it's the difference between a centrist corporatist, and the leader of American Fascism.
I agree that in whatever form American fascism takes, it will look nothing like Germany or Italy or Argentina, and that it will be uniquely American in nature.
As Robert Paxson points out, Trump is a capitalist, while Hitler & Mussolini were "socialist," however bastardized and warped their interpretation of socialism was. Their fascism was "for the greater good," while Trump's would be individualistic and, therefore, fragmented.
I don't believe we'll see anything like a "Trump 2nd Amendment Society," but I do agree that Trumpery will be based on a highly weaponized group of supporters who will not have to be directed. Trump will inevitably condone violence against protesters as merely "defensive" and reactionary, and this will spurn his supporters on to suppress various movements such as #BLM.
Trumpery will not build concentration camps, however, we'll probably see a number of "detainment centers" for the undocumented, along the lines of Abu Graib or Gitmo-style camps, with similar violations of rights, along with a new torture regime rubber-stamped by a compliant and intimidated Congress.
There won't be any Kristallnacht's, but there will be a surge in random hate crimes committed against Muslims, LGBTGs and, of course, African Americans.
Either way, it's not a pretty picture...
Just try to wrap your head around this for a moment:
The likely nominee of 1 of the 2 major parties in this country is inciting people to violence on an almost daily basis. When has this ever happened in the post-Civil War history of this nation? (Remember, George Wallace ran as an independent.)
As if this isn't serious enough, there's something else even more chilling that has yet to happen:
Where is the image of a large, bipartisan group of at least 400 US Representatives and Senators - Democrats AND Republicans - standing on the steps of the US capital building, calling out Donald Trump as a dangerous, race-baiting, xenophobic, and unhinged individual who has disqualified himself from the office, and demanding that he immediately withdraw from the Presidential race?
Where is that video?
The fact that this has yet to happen tells us more about how quickly fascism can grow and sweep across this nation than anything Donald Trump is saying or doing.
God help us if this man is elected...
You actually make a valid point, and it explains the reason why the US refuses to label people like Roof and Dear "terrorists.
The US targeted Anwar al-Awlaki - a US citizen - solely for his alleged inspirational, or influenctial role in acts of terror. There's no evidence that he was directly involved in a single act of violence. If the US were to determine that Dear and Roof were "terrorists," then the law requires that those who influenced them must also be considered "an imminent threat." According to the al-Awlaki memo, this would involve the US targeted assassinations of the leaders of the pro-life movement, neo-nazi groups, and numerous members of the US Congress who have demonized Planned Parenthood.
What's good for the goose is good for the gander, right?
http://time.com/2912137/memo-anwar-al-awlaki-doj-drone/
Yesterday, Nov. 21, a #BlackLivesMatter protester was kicked out of a Trump rally at the direction of Trump himself. This individual was also struck by attendees. In a Fox News interview this morning, Trump said the protester "...should have been roughed up..."
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/donald-trump-black-lives-matter-141050747.html
This is the closest we've come to fascism in my lifetime (40+ yrs). My question is, does this compare to the "Red Scare" era, or does this have the potential to become even worse?
The idea that Iran would commit mass suicide by using a nuke on Israel is laughable. The reason whey Israel & the US oppose an Iranian nuke is precisely why the US and Israel maintain their nuclear stockpiles - for deterrence. Iran has every right to have that weapon for deterrence, given the threats Israel has made over the last decade. Unless, of course, Israel decides to agree to a nuke-free region, then that could act as a powerful impetus for an agreement.
btw, Margelov is considered a moderate.
The US has supported the violent overthrow of _legitimately elected_ officials in Egypt, Venezuela, and now Ukraine.
One has to wonder at what point will everything be to Washington's liking? After only 6 more coups? Maybe 13 more? Or more likely, this will never end?
Of course the Yanukovych opposition had many legitimate grievances. But imagine if the US insisted on elections to change unpopular leadership, instead of supporting violent insurrections? Oh, wait...that might mean they'd have to be consistent...sorry.
Mikhail Margelov, who is the Russian equivalent of the Chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was just interviewed on RT News.
His comments were very unequivocal, that Russia is operating on the assumption that previous agreements maintaining the Black Sea Fleet at Sevastopol signed by the then "legitimate authorities" from Ukraine are still in effect. He said he sees no reason for Russia to send additional troops, since they're "already there."
He also explained that the fleet will eventually leave Sevastopol for a yet to be completed port on the Russian coastline.
He pointed out what a large melting pot Ukraine is, especially the Eastern area, and how horrific it would be if Right Sector extremists were to continue to grow, with support from political figures. He cautioned that anti-Semitism is growing within the anti-Yanukovych movement.
"1. Iran would have to..."
Right off the bat, it's up to Iran, the burden is on Iran, Iran should capitulate, it's all Iran's fault, etc., instead of:
"1. Since the US overthrew the elected government of Iran 60yrs ago, the US has no right to continue threatening and punishing Iran, and, instead, must call for the lifting of all sanctions, and begin an immediate policy of reparations for supporting the brutal dictatorship that followed the US-orchestrated 1953 subversion of Iranian democracy."
"2. Once the previous steps are taken, the US must call for a nuclear free Middle East which would require Israel to take the first step by destroying its WMD."
Of course, this will never happen, but everyone except Western neoliberal foreign policy ideologues know this would be the morally correct stance.
Joe from Lowell, the problem with your analysis is that if we agree that US consumption of fossil fuels has dropped, and this decrease equals less "transportation emissions," we also have to acknowledge that this is offset by the increased emissions from the massive increase in domestic drilling.
Fracking increases not only methane emissions from leakage and other release mechanisms, but there is flaring, the massive increase in trucking for water, flowback disposal, and the huge amount of emissions from pump generators. Pipeline ruptures/leaks are increasing, and there are proposals for increasing storage pools for disposal of frack fluids, as injection well disposal is causing ever greater problems, including earthquakes from both waste disposal AND oil and gas extraction.
So while there may be a decrease in domestic consumption, the massive increase in domestic production has offset any gains in that regard.
There are far too many studies showing this to list here, so try:
http://www.desmogblog.com/ (Steve Horn)
"But there’s this big thumping similarity: An enormous war machine, wanting, inter alia, the opportunity to test and deploy and use up various bits of inventory, and novel tactics..."
I wouldn't be too sure that the US only plans on targeting Assad's forces. Don't be surprised if certain rebel forces are also hit by US/NATO strikes, i.e. "The Fog of War?"
joe from Lowell
08/27/2013 at 8:09 am
"I notice that Secretary Kerry didn’t say anything about the rebels. A series of punitive strikes to deter future chemical warfare attacks may provide some benefit to them, but it is not the same thing as joining up with the rebellion."
Don't be too sure that certain rebel forces will not be targeted by US military strikes..."Fog of War", etc...
"The violence used to destroy the crews that were raining rocket fire down on Misrata saved thousands of lives."
The violence used by NATO in Libya killed thousands of civilians, while empowering extremist elements including AQ...
"The violence used to dismantle al Qaeda has probably saved tens of thousands of lives."
The violence used to "dismantle" al Qaeda has also killed 100s of thousands of innocents in Afghanistan/Pakistan/and Iraq combined, while creating untold numbers of new enemies that will seek revenge and retribution for the foreseeable future...
"The violence used by the Vietnamese military to overthrow the Khmer Rouge saved hundreds of thousands of lives."
The violence used by the United States to slaughter millions of Vietnamese, including countless Cambodians via LBJ/Nixon's secret bombing campaign, gave rise to extremist elements such as the Khmer Rouge, therefore causing the deaths of millions of Cambodians...
Any other examples you care to share?
What do the Mayors of Oakland, Berkeley, Denver, San Francisco, Austin, Portland OR, Nashville, St.Louis, Salt Lake City, Albany NY, Philadelphia, Youngstown OH, Burlington VT, Chapel Hill, Seattle, and Boston all have in common???
They are all DEMOCRATS who are all attacking their respective Occupations in one form or another!
What does that tell us? That it's being orchestrated from DC by the Justice Department, which is part of the Executive Branch of the US Government!
Democrats, from the New Deal, on through the 60s (Chicago '68), continuing through the 90s (Seattle), up until now, have always been a greater threat to real, revolutionary change.
WHY?
Because they cannot allow their power to be threatened _from the LEFT_, which constitutes a _greater_ threat to their power and their ideology! In other words, there's nothing a liberal hates more than a leftist who calls her/him out for sharing responsibility for the creation and maintenance of the plutocratic, bipartisan war party that runs this nation...
"GOPers Promise you War on Iran..." - Juan Cole.
Which is completely consistent with Obama's latest statement:
"We are not taking any options off the table. Iran with nuclear weapons would pose a threat not only to the region but also to the United States."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/barackobama/8887887/Barack-Obama-to-consider-all-options-to-stop-Iran-getting-nuclear-weapons.html
Professor Cole once again only gives you part of the story - the part that supports his case.
What he conveniently omits are the overtly belligerent statements from Obama administration officials - including Obama himself - in the wake of the as yet unproven "Iranian Assassination Plot."
That entire episode, of course, reveals Obama's aversion to "adventurism," i.e., make accusations that can be interpreted as accusing Iran of an act of war, without showing a single verifiable piece of evidence.
I have no doubt that Professor Cole is correct about one thing: Obama will not sanction an attack until after the election, not because of some aversion to adventurism, but for base political considerations.
Eni CEO contacted Libya rebels-Italy minister
ROME, April 4 (Reuters) - The head of Italian oil group Eni Paolo Scaroni has discussed energy cooperation with the Libyan rebel movement in Benghazi in recent days, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said on Monday.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/04/04/libya-italy-eni-idUKLDE73318K20110404
Followed by:
Italy recognizes rebels as Libya's government
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-libya-diplomacy-20110405,0,2635367.story
All for pragmatic humanitarian reasons, of course.
Nothing personal about your physical abilities and courage, which I do not question, Mr. Cole, but I won't address the ridiculous notion of a middle-aged college professor trotting off to join the latest Kinetic Military Action, a.k.a. - The Odyssey.
I will say that I think it was a real cheap shot by Greenwald to go there. Contrary to his empty reasoning, it was adolescent and rhetorical. I just wish Glenn would use this opportunity to confront you on your blatant double standard by addressing the substance of your position, something Greenwald is much better equipped to do than this game, but admitted, amateur.
But, what the hell, I'll keep trying.
Greenwald did link to the DN debate in which you made these truly disappointing series of statements:
But to compare tiny Bahrain, where there has been some violence against protesters, to Libya, where there was a national popular uprising and where, in Libya, thousands are dead, not 20, it’s just not on the same scale.
And the other thing is, you know, let us be practical, let us be pragmatic. We are people of the left. We care about the ordinary people. We care about workers. We care about the aspirations of the people, and the United States should certainly be putting pressure on the Bahrain monarchy to accommodate them. And in fact, the U.S. has put pressure on it, to the extent that the Saudi government is furious with the United States. I mean, we’re saying it’s not doing enough. The reactionary forces in the Gulf are angry that we’re doing too much. And however, you know, a military intervention in Bahrain is not a practical option, and I cannot see in what way it could even have any hope of success. The Bahraini protesters themselves would object to a direct U.S. or NATO military intervention in Bahrain.
In Libya, the people asked for this intervention: they asked for a no-fly zone. And I would be the first to admit that this is going beyond a no-fly zone. There’s also a no-drive zone.
20, 200, 2000, who's counting?!
Except that in "tiny Bahrain," there is ample evidence that it was much more than 20. There is ample evidence that Bahraini and Saudi forces have attacked hospitals, their staff, and the wounded. There is ample evidence coming out of the pro-democracy movement from their websites, through videos, tweets, and every other form of communication that, in fact, there is massive outrage that there is a double standard, that the U.S. has allowed this to happen, and has done nothing to stop the atrocities, especially with regard to the Saudi invasion, which is being portrayed as a "regional intervention," in fine Orwellian terms.
What is your evidence, Mr. Cole, that the pro-d movement in Bahrain never asked for US intervention, and what is your evidence that they would object to it? By demanding that the U.S. use its influence to stop the Bahrain regime? When has a "humanitarian" intervention ever been predicated by a request by the victims? Were the cries for intervention from the victims in Rwanda or, today, the Ivory Coast not loud enough for you? Incredible, wild statements like this with absolutely no basis do nothing for your credibility. If the US wanted to stop the atrocities in Bahrain, there was no tactical or practical impediment to it - only geostrategic.
As far as your platitudes about the left and "caring about the ordinary people," well, I think you need to put an asterisk next to a statement like that and qualify it every time you make it.
How utterly shameful.
If you spent your energy demanding that your own country cease the atrocities it is either directly responsible for, or that its allies are committing, then your platitudes might have meaning.
Sincerely,
Eli Wurth.
Gbagbo has incurred the near universal condemnation and censure of the regional and international community. Western leaders, including U.S. president Barack Obama and French president Nicolas Sarkozy have congratulated Alassane Ouattara on his victory. The European Union has announced the possibility of targeted sanctions against individuals who obstruct the electoral process, and the World Bank has warned that continued intransigence will put development assistance flows at serious risk. UN secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon has recognized and endorsed the electoral commission’s announcement of Ouattara’s victory.
http://csis.org/publication/election-crisis-ivory-coast
You couldn’t intervene in the Ivory Coast effectively with some aerial bombings of tanks. Some interventions are more practical than others. - Mr. Cole
Is that so, Mr. Cole?
Except that the bombing campaign in Libya is targeting more than just tanks. "Command and control," "communications," not to mention a blockade to stop arms flow to Qaddafi. And now we're being told the air campaign will enter a new phase, of more targeted bombing using close-support, tactical weaponry - A-10s, C-130s, etc.
Please tell us, which of these cannot be applied to the IC, and why?
And what precisely do you think would cause more harm to an underdeveloped country like IC? A precision bombing campaign that would only last "days, not weeks," or a long, drawn-out sanctions regime that would essentially strangulate an already desperate population?
An internationally recognized free and fair election has been violently overturned in a Sub-Saharan nation. There are reports of horrific atrocities being committed by pro-Gbagbo forces - these 2 facts arguably making the crises even worse than in Libya.
But somehow, it's not practical to intervene in the Ivory Coast. Just like in the 90s, Liberal Interventionism doesn't seem to apply to sub-Saharan Africa. There are no alleged rapes of pro-democracy movement women being highlighted round-the-clock in the Western press. No Pro-interventionism liberal pundits are calling for a NFZ there. Not even a blockade is practical in the eyes of certain liberal interventionists.
Bahrain, Yemen, and the Ivory Coast will just have to learn the limitations of pragmatism.
President Barack Obama in his Monday evening address to the nation on Libya outlined an effort of limitations. The US could not intervene everywhere, but it could intervene to good effect here.
The Bahrain and Yemen pro-democracy movements thank you and President Obama for your pragmatism.
After all, it would not have been "to good effect" for Secretary Gates to threaten the Saudi regime with a massive bombing campaign if they dared to send tanks across the King Fahd Causeway into Bahrain. And so the tanks rolled in only days after Gates left the area, and the violent crackdown ensued, including attacks on hospitals and doctors and nurses - atrocities that Mr. Cole finds so vile when committed by the Libyan authorities.
Despite the close and elegant moral reasoning tempered by a steady pragmatism, the speech was full of genuine feeling, including empathy and outrage. It strikes me as among the better speeches President Obama has given since taking office.
There's that term "pragmatism" again.
When it was Nixon or Reagan or the Bush's spouting such Orwellian doublespeak, the Left rightfully and accurately labeled it as such. Not so when it's a Democrat spewing the identical propaganda. Could we fill a million column inches with all of the former Presidents who expressed "genuine feeling, including empathy and outrage" as they bombed another Third World nation into the Stone Age?
Obama has already proven himself a liar when he said it would only be a matter of "days, not weeks."
The rest of Cole's article is simply a resort to partisanship, which really shows either how desperate or pathetic he's become. It's the fallback position, I guess...
- Eli.
"I can still remember when I was a teenager how disappointed I was that Soviet tanks were allowed to put down the Prague Spring and extirpate socialism with a human face." - Juan Cole
Saudi tanks rolling into Bahrain to crush the pro-democracy movement there didn't seem to matter or motivate Cole to call for Western intervention. (The fact that the U.S. is in fact, intervening to _support_ the regimes also doesn't seem to outrage Cole.) In fact, it didn't motivate him to call for a NFZ either.
There's a reason Cole doesn't directly mention Bahrain and Yemen. Like Hillary Clinton this morning on Face the Nation, he seems to think intervention is more worthy in Libya because the scale of oppression is much larger.
The humanitarian situation in Libya was fairly unique. You had a set of tank brigades willing to attack dissidents
The problem with this is, of course, that the violent suppression of freedom movements in Bahrain and Yemen occurred PRIOR to the uprising in Libya. An accurate chronology can complicate things for the liberal interventionism crowd. (I remember when the term "Liberal Interventionism" was considered an oxymoron.)
Cole, therefore, has to answer why he was so opposed to intervention in those cases, but so in favor now? Especially knowing full well that the U.S. is deeply entwined in both countries, and, therefore, had a more propitious set of circumstances to intervene in a much more powerful and less violent way to stop the atrocities.
This simple fact is why his article has no credibility.