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dreaminginthedeepsouth · 1 year ago

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Phil Hands, The Wisconsin State Journal

@PhilHands

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LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

July 18, 2023

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

JUL 19, 2023

“I approve this message.”

Joe Biden’s Twitter account put that line over an ad using the words of Georgia Republican representative Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Turning Points Action Conference speech from last weekend, in which she set out to tear down the president’s policies but ended up making him sound terrific.

The description she intended to be derogatory—that Biden “had the largest public investment in social infrastructure and environmental programs that is actually finishing what FDR started, that LBJ expanded on”—was such an argument in Biden’s favor that the Biden-Harris campaign used it to advertise what the Democratic administration stands for: “[p]rograms to address education, medical care, urban problems, rural poverty, transportation, Medicare, Medicaid, labor unions.”

Generally, Biden and Harris have so far made the case for their reelection by meeting with voters in their home districts, emphasizing job growth and infrastructure investment in those districts, seemingly trying to demonstrate—without fanfare—that a well-run Democratic government can help ordinary Americans. But Greene’s misfire was just too good not to highlight. The programs she was denigrating are, in fact, enormously popular.

Biden has generally stayed out of the headlines that involve the 2024 election, giving Republicans free rein to define themselves for the American people.

That definition became clearer this morning, when former president Trump wrote on the right-wing Truth Social network that the Department of Justice’s special counsel Jack Smith has issued him a target letter associated with the investigation into the attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election. A target letter usually means that prosecutors have enough evidence to charge someone with a crime. It offered Trump four days to appear before the grand jury to tell his side of the story, an offer Trump is expected to refuse.

Then, it is likely that he will be indicted.

Trump reacted exactly as one would expect, called Smith “deranged,” and claiming his own legal troubles were political: an attempt on the part of President Biden to eliminate his chief 2024 rival. (There is no sign that Biden has touched the investigation, but of course Trump tried to eliminate Biden in 2020 by pushing Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky to announce an investigation into Hunter Biden’s work with Ukrainian company Burisma.)

Trump harped on the idea that the investigation into his attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election is “A COMPLETE AND TOTAL WEAPONIZATION OF LAW ENFORCEMENT,” an accusation echoed by Trump loyalists Representative Jim Jordan (R-OH) and Marjorie Taylor Greene, both of whom were also involved in the attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

House speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) also echoed the accusation that the target letter is a sign of political “weaponization” of government, prompting Representative Ted Lieu (D-CA) to respond: “As Speaker, you are expected to uphold the rule of law. A target letter does not reveal what evidence the grand jury saw, nor what all the charges might be. Attacking a potential indictment before seeing the evidence and charges is irresponsible.”

But if Trump received the target letter on Sunday, why did he complain about it only today?

That delay might have had something to do with another legal issue: today’s hearing about the national security documents case, overseen by Judge Aileen Cannon. One of the issues to be discussed at that hearing was setting a date for the trial. The Department of Justice wants to go to trial in December; Trump wants to delay it until after the 2024 election.

MSNBC legal analyst Lisa Rubin noted that today’s target letter changes the calculations for the documents trial because no matter what Cannon decides, it seems likely that Trump will face another federal trial in Washington, D.C., over the events surrounding January 6, 2021. The Washington, D.C., trials for those involved in the events of January 6, 2021, have moved forward with few delays.

This week’s bad legal news for Trump did not end there.

On Friday of last week, Trump’s lawyers tried to stop Georgia’s probe into his attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in that state. They asked the court to disqualify Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis, who has been investigating that attempt, and to stop Willis from using any of the material gathered by the grand jury investigating the case. Yesterday, the Georgia Supreme Court unanimously rejected his petition, allowing the probe to go forward.

Then, today, Michigan’s attorney general Dana Nessel charged sixteen fake electors who signed fake certificates claiming that Trump had won Michigan’s electoral votes in 2020 with felonies: forgery, conspiracy to commit forgery, election law forgery, conspiracy to commit election law forgery, publishing a counterfeit record, and conspiring to publish a counterfeit record.

The sixteen Republicans met in the basement of the state Republican Party’s headquarters and signed fake documents claiming that they were the state’s legitimate electors and that Trump had won the state. Their actions were part of a plan to claim that the electoral votes of certain states were “contested,” allowing then–vice president Mike Pence to reject the votes of those states and throw the election to Trump.

The fake electors attested they were “the duly elected and qualified electors for president and vice president of the United States of America for the state of Michigan,” Nessel said. “That was a lie. They weren’t the duly elected and qualified electors, and each of the defendants knew it.” “The false electors' actions undermine the public's faith in the integrity of our elections and not only violated the spirit of the laws enshrining and defending our democracy, but we believe also plainly violated the laws by which we administer our elections in Michigan and peaceably transfer power in America,” Nessel said. “This plan, to reject the will of the voters and undermine democracy, was fraudulent and legally baseless.”

Text messages at the time show that the sixteen were “all asked to keep silent [so] as to not draw attention to what the other states were doing similar to ours!” One of those charged was former co-chair of the state Republican committee, Meshawn Maddock, who called the charges “political persecution.”

Legal analyst Renato Mariotti noted that the charges against the sixteen fake electors send a powerful message for those at the state level who might consider abetting Trump in the future. Those fake electors aren’t part of Trump’s inner circle who might get some kind of a reward for their trouble. They are just party operatives who are facing an expensive, stressful, and humiliating experience that could lead to hefty fines or imprisonment. Their example might well make others think carefully before they sign on to similar plans.

Josh Marshall pointed out in Talking Points Memo today that the lines of the 2024 election are coming clearer. Trump’s many legal troubles simply strengthen the loyalty of his base, making his nomination for the Republican presidential candidacy even more likely. But voters in the general election are unlikely to rally to someone facing multiple indictments in several different cases, especially ones related to the attempt to overthrow the results of the 2020 election, which horrified most Americans.

The Republican Party is now “handcuffed to Donald Trump,” Marshall writes.

President Biden’s policy of focusing on his job while letting the Republicans define themselves might be a smart strategy.

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

#political cartoons #Phil Hands #aging #force of evil #Joe Biden #Biden-Harris Campaign #Talking Points Memo #MAGA republicans #TFG #election 2024

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swagsuitking · 2 months ago

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Radio supply store in Wisconsin

Motorola Two-Way Radios and Radio Supply Stores in Wisconsin and Wyoming

Two-way radios are essential communication tools for a variety of industries, including construction, hospitality, education, and public safety. In states like Wisconsin and Wyoming, where both urban and rural environments require reliable communication solutions, Motorola two-way radios stand out as a preferred choice. Their durability, long battery life, and exceptional range make them ideal for a variety of settings.

Motorola Two-Way Radios in Wisconsin

Wisconsin’s diverse landscape, ranging from bustling cities like Milwaukee to rural areas and vast farmland, necessitates a robust communication network. Motorola two-way radios offer the reliability and range needed to keep teams connected, whether they’re working on a construction site in Madison or organizing an event in Green Bay.

In Wisconsin, several reputable radio supply stores cater to businesses and individuals needing communication equipment. These stores offer a wide range of Motorola two-way radios, accessories, and related services. Whether you’re looking for a single radio for personal use or a fleet for your business, Wisconsin’s radio supply stores provide expert advice and tailored solutions. They often carry popular Motorola models like the CP200d, XPR7550e, and the SL300, all known for their durability and ease of use.

For businesses or events that require temporary communication solutions, radio rentals are a cost-effective option. Many radio supply stores in Wisconsin offer rental services, allowing you to access high-quality Motorola two-way radios without the need for a long-term investment. Whether it’s a weekend festival in Madison or a construction project in Milwaukee, radio rentals ensure you have the communication tools you need without the commitment of purchasing equipment.

Two-Way Radios for Sale in Wisconsin

If you’re looking to invest in communication equipment, many Wisconsin-based stores offer a range of two-way radios for sale. Purchasing Motorola radios ensures that you have a reliable, long-term solution for your communication needs. From analog models for straightforward communication to digital radios with advanced features like GPS tracking and text messaging, there’s a Motorola two-way radio to meet the specific needs of your business or project.

Motorola Two-Way Radios in Wyoming

Wyoming’s rugged terrain and vast open spaces make reliable communication even more critical. Whether you’re managing a cattle ranch near Cheyenne or coordinating a search and rescue mission in Yellowstone, Motorola two-way radios provide the connectivity needed to operate efficiently and safely.

Wyoming’s radio supply stores offer a variety of Motorola two-way radios and accessories tailored to meet the unique challenges of the state’s diverse environments. These stores provide expert consultation to help you choose the right radios for your specific needs, whether you’re looking for equipment with long-range capabilities, rugged durability, or advanced features like noise cancellation and encryption.

Radio rentals in Wyoming are ideal for short-term projects or events, such as seasonal work in agriculture or temporary event coordination in Jackson Hole. Renting Motorola two-way radios allows you to equip your team with reliable communication tools without the upfront cost of purchasing equipment. Many Wyoming radio supply stores offer flexible rental agreements, ensuring you get the right radios for the duration of your project.

Two-Way Radios for Sale in Wyoming

For those looking to purchase two-way radios in Wyoming, Motorola’s lineup offers something for every need and budget. From basic models perfect for small businesses to advanced digital radios for larger organizations, Wyoming’s radio supply stores provide a wide selection of Motorola two-way radios. Investing in Motorola radios ensures you’re equipped with some of the most reliable and durable communication devices on the market, capable of handling Wyoming’s challenging environments.

Conclusion

Whether you’re in Wisconsin or Wyoming, Motorola two-way radios are a reliable and essential tool for communication across various industries and environments. With a range of options available for purchase or rental and expert support from local radio supply stores, you can find the right Motorola radios to meet your specific needs, ensuring efficient and safe communication for your business or project.

Visit here: https://radiosupply.com/pages/casper-motorola-radio-rentals-sales-equipment

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bethestaryouareradio · 4 months ago

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Traveling

“A journey is best measured in friends rather than miles.” – Tim Cahill

Returning just hours before the broadcast from a phenomenal choral tour of South Africa, jet-lagged and seasoned teen host, Julia, enthusiastically talks about the new friends she made on her journey and welcomes three other teen reporters to discuss the joys of international travel. Two reporters, Diya and Armine, are making their debut segments. Diya shares the suspense she experienced in the cenotes of Mexico, Mayan ruins, and the awe of visiting the Taj Mahal. Armine encourages eco-traveling with simple tips on how to explore the world while keeping the health of the planet in mind. Hasini, another new reporter, reflects on last summer’s two-month internship at a hospital in Hyderabad in South India where she worked in a laboratory and enjoyed eating street food. She also waxed poetic about the history and magnificence of the Taj Mahal. Despite the challenges and exhaustion of flying, all the teens agree that traveling to a foreign land offers cultural awareness with distinctive perspectives. Making friends and bringing back memories tops the list of bonuses. Do your research, pack your bags, and get ready to fly. Remember wherever you travel, leave only footprints, and take only memories.

• https://www.facebook.com/ExpressYourselfTeenRadio/

• https://www.facebook.com/BTSYAcharity/

• https://www.instagram.com/expressyourselfradio/

Bio: Diya Namboothiry: The Art of Suspense

Diya is an incoming 9th grader in Brookfield, Wisconsin. She is involved in the chorus, loves playing volleyball, takes Indian classical lessons for dancing and singing, and enjoys taking drumming lessons. Diya loves to help others in whichever way she can, big or small. She is involved with NJHS in her school and continues to work with a local non-profit organization outside of school. Diya is also excited about exploring the art of suspense and has begun writing short, suspenseful stories recently. She has a great mindset toward learning and believes in spreading cheer around her. Her segment is called the Art of Suspense.

Bio: Armine Valentine Freeman: Eco-Echoes

Armine is a rising Junior at Newton South High School in Newton, Massachusetts. Born in Geneva Switzerland, and beginning her education in France, she moved to the U.S. and integrated into the U.S. education system and English language, having experienced as a result different cultural background. She is passionate about actively contributing in academic, civic, and sports settings She was elected Senator of NSHS, acted for the past 3 years as an advisor to the Newton City Hall's Youth Commission, and is President of EcoBioDiversity, a local society dedicated to re-establishing native species in the community. Armine is a competitive Public Speaker, volunteering weekly to coach and mentor student participants at a local Middle School speech and debate team. She enjoys many sports, participating in multiple Junior Olympics 2022-204 for competitive fencing and playing tennis and lacrosse on school teams. The title of her segment is Eco-Echoes.

Listen at Voice America Network, Empowerment Channel: https://www.voiceamerica.com/episode/150918/traveling

RECENTLY PUBLISHED BOOK: Books in the Barnyard: Oh Deer!. Available at www.CynthiaBrian.com/online-store or www.StarStyleStore.net

BTSYA IS A TOP ON PROFIT!

http://greatnonprofits.org/reviews/be-the-star-you-are-inc/

BUY OUR BOOKS: Available at www.StarStyleStore.net

Details on all books at HomeTown Reads: https://hometownreads.com/books/be-the-star-you-are-millennials-to-boomers

Read our Newsletter:The Morning After: https://cynthiabrian.substack.com/p/the-morning-after?

Make a DONATION through PAYPAL GIVING FUND with 100% going to BTSYA with NO FEES: https://www.paypal.com/fundraiser/charity/1504

#Traveling #trips #southfrica #mexico #cenote #mayan #tajmahal #india #teenstalk #teens #expressyourself #starstyle #bethestaryouare #cynthiabrian #voiceamerica

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bocsau · 1 year ago

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Community Support Services Near me

Community Options provides housing and residential services for people with disabilities. These include single-site and congregate living.

Find community support services near you to get food, housing, utility assistance and other emergency resources. Community action counselors can help you apply for benefits. They also can connect you with non-profits and government resources.

Employment Services

Many community action agencies offer employment services that focus on competitive job placement and retaining meaningful work while taking into consideration each individual’s unique needs. These programs often include job coaching and follow-along services. Other programs may focus on reentry employment readiness for recently incarcerated individuals. Other career development resources available through community support services near me action agencies include resume writing and basic skills education, interviewing readiness, childcare search assistance, transportation and other related support.

Many of these services are available at a local level and some may also provide emergency financial assistance and other related support.

Individual Placement and Support

Individual Placement and Support (IPS) is an international evidence based model that helps people with severe mental illness find competitive employment in their communities. It is a person centered service that emphasizes consumer choice, rapid job search and placement, and time-unlimited work supports.

IPS services are integrated with treatment and begin soon after a person expresses interest in working. IPS works with clients to find jobs that align with their interests and skills, and they receive ongoing support from an employment specialist to keep the job.

All individuals who want to work are eligible for IPS, there is no minimum criteria. Contact your local LME/MCO to learn more about this service. The IPS model also offers benefits counseling, individualized employment planning, and on-going treatment to help manage medications, symptoms and other behavioral health needs. IPS is provided by Goodwill Industries of Southeastern Wisconsin and Metro Chicago. See a video about IPS here.

Home and Community Support Services

If you or a loved one needs assistance at home, local community health agencies can provide help. These regional organizations are often referred to as Local Health Integration Networks or LHINs and they offer a variety of home and community support agency services for individuals of all ages. Home and community support services can include cueing, prompting, direction and instruction to help a participant maintain their independence in the community. These services may also be used as a safety monitoring mechanism to prevent harmful activities.

Independent Living Skills Training

Individuals with disabilities often struggle to live independently because they lack the life skills necessary to achieve a good quality of life. Independent living skill training helps individuals learn the fundamentals of daily life, like personal hygiene, cooking, and shopping. It can also teach them about financial management, social skills, and safety at home and out in public.

Some independent living skills training is available through community-based organizations. For example, the John Chafee Independence Program provides youth in foster care and those who have already left the system with one-on-one independence living skills training.

Other independent living skills training is provided by centers for independent living

(CIL). These organizations provide information about assistive equipment, recreation, accessibility, and legislation. They also help people with disabilities locate resources that can assist them in gaining independence and maintaining a good quality of life. In addition, they often offer peer support and opportunities for social activities.

#community support services near me #community support agency #community support near me #community support and care #community support

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weirdcultstuff · 3 years ago

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i just reliazed youre ex amish. i feel like theres very little talk or exposure on how cultish that group is. even the wiki pages seem extremely positive and ismissive of any criticism of how kids are raised in the group and how hard it is to leave. do you have any idea od why that is? also, are there groups out there aimed at helping ex or questioning amish people?

Good questions!! The romanticizing of the Amish is incredibly frustrating to me. It just adds a huge layer of difficulty when trying to communicate across the cultural/societal barriers between the Amish community and the rest of the world. It’s also worth noting that some communities are definitely waaay more cultish than others, some are pretty benign and some are more abusive: it’s a good idea to tread lightly if you interact with any Amish people and don’t know what their specific community is like.

From my former Amish perspective, the romanticized view was positive because it:

Encourages tourism, which can be a big money maker in larger communities, and that’s important when there are lots of rules about not getting jobs outside the group and avoiding a lot of more modern/efficient ways to do things.

Makes the non-Amish world look that much more alien to group members, making it that much less likely they’ll leave.

Gives the community protection in the form of “religious freedom.” In the event that any problems come to public view (a sexual assault, money embezzlement, child abuse, etc.) there’s a very good chance that the Amish community leaders will be able to convince the local government to let them handle it internally.

I can’t say I fully understand the history or how it happened that now it’s a totally normal thing for people to take trips “to Amish country” to buy cheese and quilts and ogle everybody and their kids, or take pictures of Amish people just living their lives. I definitely experienced a lot of discomfort with the romanticism, personally. I hated having my picture taken in Walmart with my sisters, I hated feeling “dumb” because of all the stereotypes. It definitely made it much harder to leave. It makes it much more difficult to talk about my experiences now that I’m out, when the first reaction is jokes about how the Amish are harmless oddities or fascination with random things like food or hairstyles.

It’s absolutely wild to me that Amish kids are LEGALLY only required to be in school until 9th grade and nobody bats an eye about it.

Anyway, I’m rambling. I’m definitely not an expert on the Amish, I’d be very curious to see other answers to why the romanticism exists! Your second question is a little easier to answer, there are very few resources that I know of, but here are some links:

The Amish heritage foundation is fighting to overthrow Wisconsin V. Yoder, in order to improve access to education for Amish kids. They also help some ex Amish people get documented and get on their feet.

This is a very small website (lgbtamish.com) that has stories from mostly ex Amish lgbt+ people. I cried a lot when I first found it.

The Plain People’s Podcast is a podcast by ex Amish and Mennonite people, telling their own stories without any tv networks writing the scripts. 🙃 I think it provides great context to understand how there are so many very different groups within the Amish and Mennonite communities, some more problematic than others. And of course it’s great that it’s people telling their own stories.

There are so few resources, there may be more in any given community, I don’t know. When I left, I had no idea how to really use things like public libraries, or how to apply for low income housing, or homeless shelters, or how to use local transportation systems-I didn’t even know some of these things existed. These links are to specifically ex amish resources, but there are also ex-cult resources like Stephen Hassan’s Freedom of Mind Resource Center, etc.

There is definitely a need for awareness and resources, it’s a really difficult area to address. Outsiders, especially local governments, struggle to balance cultural sensitivity and religious freedom with a need to address issues like the lack of education or allegations of abuse within the community.

BASICALLY I CAN KEEP RAMBLING BUT THE WHOLE THING IS SUPER HECKIN COMPLICATED AND TOOK GENERATIONS TO GET THIS WAY AND I DONT FULLY UNDERSTAND IT OR HOW TO HELP. But your questions are very good, you get five gold stars and I’d love to hear anyone else’s responses to them too! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#resources #hope my rambling makes a little bit of sense and helps answer your questions! 💜#time to go look up the wiki page for Amish and get sad

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mostlysignssomeportents · 4 years ago

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Foxconn's Wisconsin death-rattle

No one epitomizes the hollowness of the pose of the "hard-nosed businessman" than Scott Walker, the union-busting thug who, as governor of Wisconsin, signed up to give away $3b to the Taiwanese electronics giant Foxconn, who promised a massive new factory.

This was an obviously bad deal right from the start. For literally decades, Foxconn had been tricking rubes like Walker into handing over vast public subsidies for electronics plants that were then drastically scaled down, or canceled altogether.

https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2017/08/foxconns-con-seeking-whopping-subsidies-for-wisconsin-michigan-manufacturing-jobs-if-they-happen.html

But Walker - presently joined by Trump - didn't care. All he cared about was being able to maintain the pretence that "business-friendly" policies (smashing unions, eliminating worker protections) would attract "investment" that would make everyone better off.

The public subsidy promised to Foxconn kept on growing, rising to nearly $5b, even as Foxconn reneged on its promises, eventually refusing to say what kind of factory - if any - it would build.

https://www.theverge.com/2019/12/13/21020885/foxconn-wisconsin-deal-renegotiate-tax-subsidy-lcd-factory-plant

Foxconn kept up the pretense of activity, though. At one point, it used all that public subsidy money to buy up or rent out a bunch of Wisconsin's nicest urban buildings and announced that they would be "innovation centers," which sat, empty.

https://www.theverge.com/2019/4/10/18296793/foxconn-wisconsin-location-factory-innovation-centers-technology-hub-no-news

Periodically, the company would announce that these innovation centers were now thriving, filled with Wisconsin startups that would plug into the Foxconn commercial/manufacturing ecosystem, but...they were still empty.

https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/13/18565408/foxconn-wisconsin-innovation-centers-factories-empty-tax-subsidy

All of this commercial theater kept the deal alive, kept the subsidy money flowing, and served as a convincer as Foxconn sought out other suckers who'd hand it more public subsidy on the promise of a plant in their out-of-the-way town.

https://pluralistic.net/2020/04/12/mammon-worshippers/#scott-at-at-walker

This is the *real* "art of the deal." Foxconn let Trump and Walker run around, claiming to have brought manufacturing back to America, even as it floated trial balloons like, "What if we scrap the factory and instead export Wisconsin dairy to China?"

https://pluralistic.net/2020/10/23/foxconned/#foxconned

Walker eventually lost his job to Tony Evers, who commissioned an independent investigation to see what parts of the massive Foxconn deal could possibly be salvaged. The auditors' conclusion was what *none of it* was viable. None of it.

https://www.theverge.com/2019/8/6/20747166/wisconsin-foxconn-deal-state-report-lcd-factory-innovation-centers

But all this came years after Walker's administration and Racine County had seized family homes near the Foxconn site to make way for a road-widening project to help the trucks that would never come reach the factory that would never be built.

https://beltmag.com/blighted-by-foxconn/

People lost the homes they'd lived in for generations, all for unconvincing political theater that allowed Walker and Trump to do a little boasting and empty the public coffers into the accounts of a global tech giant best known for driving its factory workers to suicide.

Four years later, the con appears to be winding down. Foxconn has officially admitted that rather than investing $10b, it will invest $1b and instead of creating 13,000 jobs, it will create 1,454.

As David Dayen writes for The American Prospect, it's a prelude to killing the deal altogether. Foxconn isn't even sure what this imaginary factory will build. Maybe parts for network switches? Maybe electric cars? (My money is on dairy farms!)

https://prospect.org/power/foxconn-finally-admits-con/

Gov Evers has whittled Foxconn's promised subsidy down to $80m, which Foxconn will have to return if it doesn't deliver (Trump, take note: that's how you do a deal).

But Evers couldn't save the state from all of Walker and Trump's foolishness. They've already blown $200m on "sales and use tax exemptions, state road improvements, and grants to local governments for workforce training."

Far worse off is the village of Mt Pleasant and the County of Racine, who've blown $1b on the nonexistent factory, including $160m to seize and destroy their residents' family homes, and $117m to run power to the empty site where no factory will be built.

The State of Wisconsin is supposed to pay the county and town 40% of that expenditure; writing in Good Jobs First, Greg LeRoy argues that the state should cover 100% of those payouts and then recoup it from Foxconn.

https://www.goodjobsfirst.org/news/releases/revamped-foxconn-deal-leaves-mt-pleasant-and-racine-county-fiscal-peril

As Dayen says: "Rather than offering bribes to corporate giants, they’d be much better off improving their education, health care, and transportation systems, making them more attractive to businesses. That would have the dual benefit of making their cities and states nicer to live in. Wouldn’t that be a concept."

#pluralistic

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loveletter2you · 3 years ago

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Thank You for all the resources put on the blog for everyone to enjoy!!! I'm very grateful for it.

I was wondering, do you have any resources for European Portuguese? Thank You in advance 😊💕✨

hi! here is what i have for you

textbooks

[dropbox link for 6 textbooks] (im gonna let you peruse the ones i have, one of them is a frequency dictionary and one is a reference grammar but the others are proper textbooks i believe!)

Português para principiantes (this book is entirely free online via the university of wisconsin)

online courses

memrise (tbh i think memrise is really good for vocabulary, less good for grammar though)

plataforma de português online

Kickstart Your Portuguese (free 1.5 hour video course of the absolute basics like basic conversation and introductions)

Practiceportuguese.com (tbh this isn’t free but if you’re willing to pay this website looks pretty great)

other

Deepl (online translator - lets you choose between european portuguese and brazilian!)

verbix (verb conjugation)

Loecsen (vocab lists w/ audio)

RTP Zigzag (section of portugal’s public broadcasting network website aimed at children, they offer short videos on educational topics)

Learn Portuguese with Rafa (educataional website based around european portuguese)

Camões Instituto da Cooperação e da Lingua Portugal (intermediate level resource with readings, listening exercises, and games)

Digitial Dialects Portuguese Learning Games

Letras (song lyrics website, there’s also songs that are not in portuguese but the website is portuguese so there’s plenty of portuguese songs)

Say It in Portuguese (podcast! the episodes are entirely in portuguese but there are transcripts online)

Talk the Streets (youtube channel dedicated to european portuguese)

Portugueses no Mundo (intermediate level podcast about travel)

Simpleton Portuguese (youtube channel)

Easy Brazilian Portuguese (youtube channel! not what you asked for sorry but still helpful)

here is a list of more resources for you to browse

#ask #i hope this helps!

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joezworld · 4 years ago

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📂

What in the HECK happened with Scotsman, Dominion, and Dwight during the Great Gathering?!

(Also, since Dutchess of Hamilton has also been to the US during the 1939 NY World’s Fair, did she get involved?)

Warning - extremely long post below

So, first of all, Duchess of Hamilton never went back to the UK.

Duchess of Hamilton (6229) and Coronation (6220) had their nameplates swapped by the LMS when an engine was sent over to the US. 6229, in the guise of 6220, went to the US.

Streamlined locomotives were all the rage at the time, and railroads practically fell over themselves to get Coronation (as she was now known) onto press trains. The B&O railroad in particular was so impressed with her capabilities that they extended a formal offer of employment to her for service on their streamlined Royal Blue service. The LMS were surprised to get an offer to "purchase" their locomotive, but accepted nonetheless, as it meant a welcome infusion of cash in the dark days during the beginning of WWII.

Coronation fit right in with the Americans, having only been about a year old when she was sent to New York. Following the end of steam traction on the Royal Blue in the late 40s, (the B&O were early adopters of diesels.) she and her B&O coworkers found good employment on the New York Central, where she still runs to this day.

Since then, she's fully "gone native", marrying a J3 Hudson, (yes one of the streamlined ones) adopting both an American accent and three children, and being fully repainted to NYC silver by 1956. Flying Scotsman met her in Albany in 1970, and neither one of them recognized the other.

Actually, most UK expats don't recognize her, to the point where a common interaction is for her to be held up as an example of "look at her, she's integrated well into the US", only for the British engines to say "that's preposterous, she isn't English".

When it's pointed out that she's still obviously an LMS Coronation, the next response is usually screaming.

All that being said, she has no interest to come back to the United Kingdom, and wasn’t asked by the NRM anyways.

---------------

Second of all, the Great Gathering was... an event.

So, there are (officially) 6 preserved Gresley A4s.

Mallard - static, National Railway Museum (UK). Also an asshole.

Bittern - running, private owner, UK based

Sir Nigel Gresley - running, owned by a trust, UK based

Union of South Africa - running, private owner, UK based

Dwight D. Eisenhower - static (officially), National Railway Museum (USA)

Dominion of Canada - static (officially), Exporail (Montréal)

This is the official list, and for the first 4 engines, it's the truth.

However, things are a bit hazier on the other side of the Atlantic...

-----

So the thing that needs to be made clear right up front that in a sentient vehicle world, museums aren't like the NRM, where locomotives sit static for years on end, although obviously the English have museums like that because of course they do.

Rail museums in the rest of the world are much more like Colonial Williamsburg - a living history center staffed by volunteers who act out a prototypical setting from [insert decade here].

British Rail, being British Rail, didn’t know that and didn’t care.

4496, Dwight D. Eisenhower, having been named after the General-turned-President, had been earmarked for preservation by BR, and was summarily shipped off to the US National Railway Museum in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

In an entirely unintentional move, this donation MONUMENTALLY snubbed the Smithsonian, who refused to have any dealings with BR for decades, even for archival purposes. This, combined with the fallout from Operation Smash Hit, and the fact that the Smithsonian is Petty AF, meant that there was virtually no official trans-Atlantic cooperation between British and US museums for decades.

Dwight hit the shores of the US in 1964 New York City and was greeted by a marching band, a ticker-tape parade, and Presidents Johnson and Eisenhower, who were on-hand to personally make the engine a US citizen.

Always keen to curry favor with the government, the Southern Pacific railroad had a job offer waiting for Dwight right alongside the Presidents and the parade, and when he accepted, he went off to Sunny Southern California - someplace so opposed to Britain the he fell in love with the place immediately and refused to leave!

The ladies may have also had something to do with it as well - while most engine classes fell into a typical 50-50 gender distribution, the SP GS-4 class was all female...

[Pictured above - one of 28 very good reasons to live in California if you're a single British steam engine.]

Dwight does not kiss and tell, but at his wedding in 1974, all 28 GS-4s showed up - and he was only marrying one of them!

Since the 70's, he's become a mainstay in California, having been repainted into Daylight Limited colors in 1969, and retiring from railroad duties in 1999. After that, he went into the movie business, and is currently the head of digital media development at Disney.

His wife Irene (SP 4437) is also an interesting figure as well - following in the wheelmarks of the great female locomotives before her, she had an eye for business and a Stanford education before she married her husband, and was an initial investor in multiple tech companies in Silicon Valley during the 70's and 80's, but stopped doing that after her investment in Apple proved very lucrative. In 1996, she was convinced by a few people in the Stanford Alumni association to invest in another tech startup, this one an "internet search engine" called Google.

So yeah, Dwight Eisenhower kept falling up and up and up all his life, and is now married to the richest woman in the world.

4489 Dominion of Canada was donated mostly by accident, having been forgotten in the back of Darlington sheds until 1966, when she was shipped off to the Canadian Railway Historical Society in Montreal.

As stated elsewhere, the Canadian Government considered any locomotive built in the UK to have UK citizenship, and therefore treated them as commonwealth citizens under existing Canadian law. (remember that Canada was still a colony at that time)

CN, the national rail carrier, was obligated to offer her a job under their charter, and she accepted, moving to Toronto to run intercity trains between Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa.

Within two years she was displaced from those duties by the introduction of a new, shiny, jet turbine powered train, and was summarily demoted to local commuter runs in the Toronto suburbs.

Moving to suburbia did one thing more than anything else - expose her to the people who live there. They all had complaints, they all had problems, and they all had no idea on how to fix them.

Being a helpful sort, Dominion decided that she could help, and promptly ran for Toronto city council in 1974. She won, and has been a fixture in local Toronto politics ever since - she even got to be Chairwoman of Metro Toronto (the closest thing to being mayor because Toronto's governmental structure is weird) until 1998, when Toronto was merged with the surrounding area to create a massive new region.

Having then done everything there is to do in municipal Toronto government, Dominion went on to become the Chief Executive Officer of Metrolinx, the agency that controls almost all of the transit agencies in Ontario, because, as she puts it, "I'm still a commuter engine at heart".

She's now painted in the current GO Transit paint scheme, and still does commuter runs- which is really weird looking now that there are double deck commuter coaches in a push-pull configuration, with a Gresley A4 doing the pushing.

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Now, I mentioned that those 6 were the only ones officially preserved - there were two unofficial preservations as well...

4486 Merlin was properly Shanghied - he was yanked off the docks in Southhampton by a cargo ship in August of 1965, and was spirited away to parts unknown.

Those unknown parts turned out to be South Korea. There, he was given citizenship by the US-aligned military dictatorship (Korean history is wild) and was employed by the State-run rail operator.

As the military government began a hardcore plan to increase their country's wealth and industrial output, rail lines were being built across the country, and Merlin was soon awarded a position on the fastest train in the network, the Seoul-Busan Saemaeul-ho.

Because of his experience in running high-speed express trains, Merlin not only became the public face of Korean high-speed rail, but also became an "honored elder" amongst the other Korean engines, a position he still holds to this day - as despite being over 70 years old, he still runs daily trains on the fast services, easily keeping time with the Korean schedules as well as training the new high speed trains, including the KTX sets. He's on his 24th boiler by now, and has more parts from Hyundai than Doncaster.

An additional fact - Merlin actually has had a linguistic effect on Korean railroading, as his strange amalgamation of an accent - a strong Yorkshire accent that tried to be Received Pronunciation for 30 years, mixed with almost 50 years of middle-to-upper-class Korean - has filtered down through the ranks of KoRail, because all of his students want to sound like him out of respect. Human British expats in Korea will occasionally hear a locomotive speaking in English, and the engine will sound like a Yorkshireman every time and the Brits cannot handle it.

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4495 Golden Fleece is the only A4 to preserve himself - he saw the writing on the wall in the early 60s, and hopped a car ferry to France at the end of 1962. From there, he bounced around Europe for a bit before making it to the United States in the late 70's.

Of the 8 surviving A4s, he's probably led the quietest life of all - he moved to Miami before it got nice, and basically got in on the ground floor of CSX when that merger happened in 1980. He's now the head of terminal operations for the Port of Miami, but he's generally kept a low profile - not even having a chance to meet Scotsman due to his time in Europe.

He's still in contact with Dwight and Dominion, and has no real bitterness over not being "famous" like they are - he likes the quiet, and still lives in a modest house in Boynton Beach with his long-term girlfriend.

----------------------

Soooo... the Great Gathering.

It was supposed to be a meeting of the 6 surviving A4s - a two year event held at the NRM in honor of the 75th anniversary of Mallard's record-setting run.

"Record setting" is a past-tense term here. While there have been no official runs, every single one of the Pennsylvania Railroad's T1 and S1 locomotives claim to have gone faster than 126 without meaning to, and numerous other locomotives on unofficial attempts done late at night on flat stretches of land across the country have hit 130+.

British Expats have also done better than 126 - Coronation claims to have hit at least 140 on a midnight mail train in 1980, and in Korea, Merlin claims to have hit 128 on a test train, although that was judged by timing mile markers as his speedometer wasn't functioning properly.

Problems arose before any of the engines had even reached the NRM, as Mallard's already sizeable ego had swelled to massive proportions, and several engines in the great hall were planning a justifiable homicide.

Then came the time restraints - none of the foreign locomotives were willing to uproot their lives and jobs for two years just to sit motionless in a shed. A two year exhibition was eventually negotiated down to a 6 month gala, much to the irritation and confusion of the NRM, who could not understand that the engines were still in service.

Then came the extra engines - Dwight and Dominion thought that the NRM knew about Fleece, and were quite insulted on his behalf when he wasn't invited - they threatened to not attend unless arrangements were made for Fleece to attend as well.

An utterly baffled NRM agreed, but also tore their record archives apart, as they knew that Fleece had been scrapped. The fact that his picture was plastered all over CSX's Florida Division website was all the more confusing as a result.

Meanwhile in Busan, nobody knew that Merlin had escaped the scrappers' torch and therefore did not invite him. He was only informed after K-Pop star Psy texted him from London to ask if he knew about the event, which was being advertised on television.

Merlin, having missed his friends from the LNER, decided that he would just crash the party, used some of his many vacation days, and took off for England on a cargo ship.

By sheer coincidence, all four foreign A4s hit the dock in Southhampton on the same day, and were delighted to see each other - especially Merlin, considering that everyone else had thought he'd died.

Meanwhile at the NRM, delight was not the word one would use. Befuddled, confused, shocked even, but not delighted. Their plans had revolved around 6 A4s, most of which wouldn’t be running - only to now discover that there were 7, all but one of which were functioning! (Mallard, the star of the show, was the odd one out, and it drove him crazy)

Then they got a phone call from their man at the docks saying that another one had showed up, looking like he’d driven out of a K-pop album cover, and they just gave up and started screaming.

Screaming is also what happened when the cavalcade of foreigners showed up in York - first of all, the quartet of new engines sounded nothing like they had when they left England.

Dwight had willfully unlearned his Upper Crust British accent by 1971, and had fallen deep into a California accent (quite similar to what Scotsman sounds like - coincidence? No.)

Dominion and Fleece hadn’t tried to unlearn their accents, but 40+ years of living in North America can really dilute the Britishness. It doesn’t help that Dominion has developed most Canadian vocal tics eh?

As stated above, Merlin has a weird fuckin accent, and now he speaks English with a strong Yorkshire accent, but will occasionally and without warning drop into a Korean/Yorkshire hybrid accent.

The screaming also happened because the NRM had wanted to repaint the duo trio! quartet?! into LNER garter blue, and were promptly informed that “we’re painted like this for work! Don’t touch it!” (the sole exception was Dwight, who hadn’t pulled a real train in 14 years, but he liked his Daylight Limited paint), so instead of the new arrivals showing up in LNER colours, they showed up looking like THIS:

Having their long-lost siblings show up looking and sounding like THAT had quite an affect on the A4s and the other NRM engines:

Bittern could not believe her eyes - to the point where she actually began making noise about seeing an optometrist

Union of South Africa almost backed through a wall

Sir Nigel Gresley was speechless for two days

Mallard was so angry that he actually chipped a tooth during one of his rants about “the impropriety of it all!!”

Evening Star laughed so hard that he managed to derail himself without moving

City of Truro almost cracked a piston from shock

Alycidon spent the entire gala coming up with more and more laser focused jabs at Mallard - who was so easy to fluster that the Deltic needn’t have bothered

Oliver Cromwell and Green Arrow made fast friends with the new arrivals, and spent the entire time learning ‘Americanisms’ to annoy the other engines with.

But what about Flying Scotsman? Where was he in all of this? He was generally considered to be the “leader” of the NRM fleet (much to Mallard’s annoyance), and was usually who the other engines turned to when things started getting out of control.

Did Scotsman calm things down? Like hell he did. The inmates were running the asylum from the moment that Scotsman saw the other A4s - more importantly saw Dwight - and immediately greeted them in flawless Californian.

This actually set off the building’s security alarm, as Flying Scotsman saying “DUDES! Wassup?!” caused such an uproar that the noise broke several exterior windows.

----

And all of this was in the first few days - there were six months left to go.

There was one railtour attempt. It was supposed to feature Bittern and Sir Nigel running in tandem, but instead featured Dwight and Merlin, mainly because Bittern wanted to see what would happen.

They exceeded the max speed limit for steam traction within 15 minutes, sparked a thorough investigation by the RAIB, and got all future steam powered railtours for the Gathering cancelled immediately.

On the plus side, the two engines did prove that it was still possible for a steam train to hit 100 safely.

One thing that baffled the other engines was the inordinately large number of people who turned up just to see Dominion, and the one person who kept turning up to see Fleece - it took a lot of explaining for them to understand that Dominion had been married three times, and had children (adopted) and grandchildren from all three marriages coming to see her. A similar amount of explaining was required to explain that Fleece’s girlfriend/partner wanted to see him too.

The normally chatty Dwight and Scotsman would suddenly clam up whenever Dominion and Fleece teasingly tried to ask about their love lives, something which wasn’t unnoticed by the other engines, but got similarly nowhere.

The answer to why they both shut the hell up was explained when a lot of shouting broke out in the yard of the NRM one day about a month into the exhibition:

Irene Eisenhower, not content to sit in California and count her billions, quickly grew bored without her husband, and decided to go to England and be with him. The fact that she definitely did not fit the UK loading gauge was never even a consideration, and so she just showed up in York on the back of a lorry, having informed no-one of her arrival, and content to just pay off the requisite people if a fuss occurred.

A fuss did occur, and it was only ended when Scotsman managed to convince the museum’s curator (who at this point in his life was regretting ever thinking of this damned gathering) that Irene was a ‘temporary donation’ to the museum.

[Scotsman, who definitely hid his Cali accent from museum staff the entire time, has one of the best poker faces in the world]

Dwight was overjoyed, and so was Scotsman, for initially unclear reasons. Then Irene managed to grab both her husband and Scotsman, dragged them behind a shed, and [THIS IS A PG13 HEADCANON] the both of [PG13]. Turns out that while Scotsman may have slept his way across the US a few times, he was actually ready to settle down with Dwight and Irene - they were a throuple way back in the 70s, and those passions haven’t faded. When Scotsman reluctantly left the US in 74, a lot of the reluctance was because of those two.

This bombshell of a revelation went over interestingly at the NRM. Some engines (Green Arrow) were happy for them, some were incensed (Mallard - although it was for anti-American reasons, not homophobic ones), and some were intensely curious about what was going on in the outside world (Bittern).

The ‘foreigners’ (as Mallard had taken to calling them), were deeply displeased at how their fellow engines were being treated - while a lot of them were ‘in steam’, some were not and might never be again, something they found abhorrent. Unable to do anything at that time, as the NRM was not a for-profit entity and therefore did not have anyone to bribe, (Irene’s solution to things is to throw money at the situation) the engines started talking about how life was different in the outside world - namely that engines were still working hard, even when they were over a century old and running on steam power.

This was of great interest to engines like Evening Star and (6220) Duchess of Hamilton, neither of whom were likely to be steamed again, and Bittern, who was growing more and more curious with each passing day. Dissent began to slowly build against the NRM curators, and the culture of the United Kingdom in general.

One thing the foreigners did try do something about was Ellerman Lines. The poor bastard had been sectioned to show his inner workings, much to the jaw-dropped horror of the foreign A4s, who made such a stink about it that he was moved outside the museum by NRM staff, who must have thought that the engines lacked object permanence or something, because that didn’t make it better!

Irene Eisenhower, who was beginning to get really sick of the nonsense that the NRM called preservation, (Scotsman was not in running condition, and had been hastily reassembled mid-overhaul in order to be cosmetically ready for the event, and let’s not forget poor Ellerman Lines) elected to bring the event to a close on her own after only three months. She did this by eventually putting her immense wealth to good use, and called for a haulage service to rescue the engines from the NRM without the knowledge of the museum staff. Aside from the A4s, she also took Ellerman Lines, Scotsman, and Bittern (who had asked to go) with her, and only bothered to inform Ellerman and Bittern - she was not about risk Scotsman having another “think of England” moment and staying.

The haulage firm was efficient and the cargo ship was waiting, so the engines were in international waters before the NRM opened the next morning.

Much swearing occurred in England that day, and the NRM’s image has yet to fully recover from the PR story that they had sold Flying Scotsman (and Ellerman Lines) to a reclusive American billionaire.

Privately though, the NRM does not care, as that story is a lot better than “Someone stole our engines and we’re not allowed to get them back because as it turns out we’re slaveowners, so no international court will help us.”

Also, despite their multimillion dollar “donation" from the I. Eisenhower Opportunity Fund, they still haven’t been able to fully pacify their engines, all of whom have somehow gotten the idea that they should be running in main line service like they live on Sodor or something...

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Dwight, Scotsman, and Irene all live happily together in the sprawling Eisenhower estate in Malibu. Irene is currently lobbying the California state government to legalize polygamy, with moderate success.

Ellerman Lines, after a lot of therapy and a full rebuild, is now working on a short line in Wyoming. He likes the scenery.

Bittern followed Dwight, Irene, and Scotsman to Los Angeles, and used her ‘connections’ (Dwight) to get a supporting role in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Since then, she’s gotten several roles based on her own merits, including an Emmy nomination for Best Guest Appearance in a Comedy.

Merlin spent a few months in LA before he went back to Korea. He is very thankful that he was able to reconnect with his brothers and sisters, and that his homeland has good internet, as he video calls his family across the Pacific almost every day.

Golden Fleece still lives a quiet life in Florida, but finally decided to tie the knot, and married his girlfriend in 2017. The ceremony was supposed to be quiet, but Irene Eisenhower has no idea what that word means.

Dominion of Canada continues to baffle non-local trainspotters when she runs commuter trains into Toronto. She is now a great-grandmother.

7 years later, and the term “Great Gathering” is still a forbidden phrase in the back rooms of the NRM.

#ask response #long #really long #I wrote this for like me and two other people at most #national railway museum #flying scotsman #Headcanon #ttte #ttte adjacent #bittern #mallard #train headcanon #locomotive rights headcanon #extremely specific headcanon #headcanon

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wausaupilot · 7 months ago

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'Route 51' to delve into work of UniverCity Alliance

WAUSAU – An innovative program at University of Wisconsin-Madison is connecting communities throughout Wisconsin to education, outreach, technical assistance and research to help local governments solve challenges and improve livability and wellbeing. UniverCity Alliance, a member of the Educational Partnerships for Innovation in Communities Network, is already working with cities including Eau…

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#Aaron Jenson #Angela Kita #Educational Partnerships for Innovation in Communities Network #Route 51 #Shereen Siewert #UniverCity Alliance #Wisconsin Public Radio #WPR

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queerpyracy · 3 years ago

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DY: You’ve written in a recent newsletter about your view that “White American liberal politics is more about class-and-educational signaling than it is about the actual act of making our society more livable and just.” What are the telltale signs of signaling? What does the shift from signaling to action actually look like?

GB: Well, the biggest sign that what you’re doing “politically” is just in-group signaling is if the primary beneficiary is your own ego and/or reputation. Throughout history, rural and/or conservative communities have been really convenient sin-eaters for white progressives to show how much “better” they are than the “bad white people.” All we have ever had to do, even before social media, was to decry the backwards, hateful hicks. It’s literally my biggest pet peeve. At best, it’s all just sound and fury. At worst, it gives bad faith actors (like politicians or media personalities) the chance to say to folks in rural communities “see, they’re just laughing at you again! Vote for me or watch my network to protect you from the condescending elites!”

By contrast, the kind of politics that I’m interested in involves believing that every community is capable of positive change and being on the look-out for folks in those communities who are either doing that work or would like to do that work, and supporting them.

Here’s a great recent example, not from a rural community but from a place that’s often derided as being a backwards, white conservative place. Waukesha County, Wisconsin recently made the news because its school board voted to decline funds from the Federal Government to provide free lunch to all its students. The story went viral, in part because a few school-board members threw out some particularly vile, boneheaded quotes about kids getting “addicted” to free food. And most of that virality, at least online, was folks just yelling at what a terrible place Waukesha County must be and how these school board members deserved some kind of righteous punishment. That’s a textbook example of doing something that feels political but is actually just showing off how virtuous you are in contrast to some terrible foil.

Now, the piece of the story that most folks missed—and that very much did NOT go viral—is that the only reason this story made national press is because of the savvy media strategy of the parent advocacy group that was fighting to repeal the board’s decision. These were parents, in a very conservative county, waging a public relations campaign to get their community on board for what we often assume is an impossible sell in places like that: a universal government program. And the best piece of the whole story is that they won! The board reversed its decision! In an ideal world, it’s that piece of the story—what those activists did, what support they need for their next effort, how to replicate it in other communities—that we should be shouting from the roof tops! Sign me up for that vision of political action. The easy dunks on white people in “those places” though? Completely and totally unhelpful.

[Read Article]

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96thdayofrage · 3 years ago

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The Black Wall Around Barack Obama: Who Does It Protect Him Against?

When we build a black wall around Barack Obama, we are only protecting him from accountability to us.

The presumption that Barack Obama, no matter what he does or doesn't do, enjoys nearly unanimous black support is a veritable wall around the president. But who does it protect him against? Republicans? Banksters? Tea partyers, warmongers, torturers? Or does it protect him against black people and the left, his supposed base?

It was the summer of 2007, and I was in the study of a prominent black Atlanta pastor. The conversation turned, as did so many that season to the coming presidential election, still a good 16 months away. “We've got to unite and build a wall, a solid black wall around Brother Obama,” the reverend declared.

I tried to ask whether one man's career was really more important than the needs of forty million black people, what obligations candidate Obama would owe the black community, and how we might ensure these were fulfilled. But the pastor wasn't hearing any of this. All the obligations, in his view, seemed to flow from the bottom up, while the power flowed from the top down. It's never easy to stop a preacher on a roll.

“If we can build that solid black wall,” he continued, “if we can unite black people behind Brother Obama, he will have the power to do anything he wants to do. Can't you see it?” he asked. “If we do that, nothing any of his opponents say or do will be able to touch him.” Almost four years later, it looks like black America's legacy leadership are still following the pastor's playbook.

The black political wall around Barack Obama is a reality, and one of the president's most powerful political assets. It trades upon African America's historic credibility as a people of struggle, the people who produced Nat Turner and Ida B. Wells, Charles Hamilton Houston, Kwame Toure and Martin Luther King and many, many others.

White liberals and progressives often tend to follow the lead of black America, whether right or wrong. You want to know what you should do? The president's black and black people are supporting him? What else do you need to know? But who is inside that wall, and who is outside? Who does the black wall the Atlanta preacher described protect Barack Obama against?

The black wall around Barack Obama doesn't protect him from the war makers and war criminals of the bipartisan military industrial complex.

From the beginning, the architects of the Bush-Cheney policies of torture and unjust war have been on the inside of Barack Obama's wall, not outside it. With U.S. troops in 144 countries, the most powerful person in government outside the White House is the Secretary of Defense. Obama was the first president in U.S. history to keep a Secretary of War (the office's pre-1948 name) from the other party. He ran promising to expand the military, to escalate the war in Afghanistan, crack down on the Palestinians, continue the provocations and threats toward Venezuela, Cuba, Iran and so forth, and to close Guantanamo and end illegal torture.

In office Obama kept Guantanamo and the network of global secret prisons remain open. He “legalized” torture, declined to prosecute Bush-Cheney crimes. This president has kept all his warlike promises, breaking only his peaceful pledges. The president has viciously prosecuted whistle blowers, like those who leaked video of U.S. troops gunning down innocent civilians in Iraq.

The black wall around Barack Obama protects the president, but it protects the war machine too. But while black America remains the most antiwar section of the U.S. polity, black critics of the imperial wars are not heard. They are on the outside of Obama's black wall.

Don't criticize the dear leader too loudly, they are told, lest you weaken him. Look--- over there --- it's President Michelle Bachman!

The black wall around Barack Obama doesn't protect him from greedy Wall Street banksters and corporate thugs.

Like the war makers, the banksters were inside the Barack's wall long before the inauguration, even before the election. When George Bush couldn't pass his own bailout bill through Congress, he had to summon Barack Obama to D.C. Obama halted his campaign for a week or two and lined up Democrats to vote for the Bush bailout. Without their votes, it could not have passed. Once in office, Obama doubled down on the bailout, doling out more than $21 trillion to his benefactors thus far.

Homes are the principal assets of most who have them. The continuing wave of foreclosures, disproportionately affecting black families, is the most serious raid on black wealth in decades, widening the already vast wealth gap between blacks and whites.

The black wall around Barack Obama protects the president, and the banksters with him. Those opposed to the foreclosures, who want to rein in and prosecute Wall Street predators, who organize against foreclosures find themselves outside Barack Obama's black wall, not inside it. ACORN registered voters to elect this president. But Obama stood by and watched them falsely accused, smeared and broken.

Look --- over there! It's the Tea Party! Circle the wagons, get back in line!

The black wall around Barack Obama doesn't protect him against the forces aiming to privatize public education

From the beginning President Obama has been an enthusiastic supporter of efforts to blame and defame public school teachers, and to charterize and privatize public education. As Chicago Schools CEO his infamous Secretary of Education fired hundreds of dedicated, qualified Chicago teachers in order to replace their schools with charters. Obama has taken Duncan's failed Chicago policies national, firing for example, a whole school district of teachers in Providence, Rhode Island. Obama's Race To The Top forces states to reorganize public education to suit the dictates of the Gates, Broad and Walton Family Foundations, the private sector actors who gave birth to the charter school industry, which is firmly inside Barack Obama's black wall.

This week the president is scheduled to make his first public appearance since announcing his re-election campaign at the national convention of Al Sharpton's National Action Network, along with Arne Duncan. Together with Newt Gingrich, Duncan and Sharpton have been campaigning for charters and school privatization nationwide for the last two years. Gingrich, Duncan and Sharpton, the three stooges of corporate school reform are firmly inside Barack Obama's black wall, along with their foundation benefactors. Public school teachers and the communities they server are as usual, on the outside, but required to man the barricades for Obama's re-election.

Watch out! It's Mike Huckabee and Mitch Romney! You don't want that to happen, do you?

The black wall around Barack Obama doesn't protect him against Republican-led assaults on democratic rights.

Restrictive voter-ID laws are proliferating in Republican-led legislatures across the country with the clear intent of reducing the number of student and minority voters. Perhaps the first was in Georgia, where the Voting Rights Act gives the US Justice Department authority to block any changes in election law that disproportionately affect blacks. The wave of disenfranchisement could have been prevented. But black legacy leadership didn't pressure the Obama administration, and the Department of Justice didn't lift a finger.

The traditional black leadership are so bankrupt that when right wing propagandist Andrew Breitbart smeared Shirley Sherrod, a local human rights activist of 45 years standing, even the NAACP, who doubtless knew her history, rushed endorsed the calumny. Shirley Sherrod, along with millions of black, brown and young voters are on the outside of Barack Obama's wall.

Republican governors and legislatures in Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio and Indiana have passed ambitious efforts to end public sector unions, ban union political contributions. Michigan passed a measure that would let governors overrule or dissolve school boards and local governments by declaring a “fiscal emergency” and appointing an individual or corporation to rule in their place.

But the fiscal hawks are inside Barack Obamas wall, not outside it. The president himself promotes the fictions that “national debt is like family debt” and that cuts in wages, benefits, Medicare, Medicaid and social security are the solution to his fictitious problem.

Unions are outside Barack Obama's black wall too, although he gratefully accepts their campaign contributions, and allows their leaders to sit on commissions and meet with him from time to time. Union leaders invited the president to come to Madison, Wisconsin during the face-off with the legislature. Fortunately, he declined. They invited the vice-president. He demurred. They invited the Secretary of Labor. No way. Here again, the president's freeze on the pay and rights of federal workers set the stage for Republican moves to take it one step further.

Look --- over there! It's President Sarah Palin! Can you live with that? Shut up and drink your kool-aid.

In every case, the black wall around Barack Obama protects him not from Tea Partyers and Republican foes, whom he is anxious to meet more than half way. The black wall around Barack Obama protects him from accountability to black people, to his supposed base.

Increasingly we can expect the White House and its allies will demand that all grassroots political agitation and organizing not explicitly connected with turning out the vote for the president and his party cease. That's been the traditional pattern. Antiwar movements, housing and human rights work, all of it folds in even numbered years, as activists allow all their efforts to be diverted into electing Democrats.

As 2012 looms, the black wall around Obama remains a crucial asset. It's why his first campaign appearance will be on the arm of Al Sharpton. The pressure will be on to circle the wagons again, to build the wall higher. As the pastor predicted, the black wall around Barack Obama wall insulates the president against his foes, not from the right, but from the left. It protects the president not against the Pentagon, the banksters, the corporate thugs, the privatizers and the Republicans, all of whom he seems to get along with just fine --- but against us. It makes him democracy-proof and people-proof. It protects him against his own supposed base.

It's time for black America to answer the questions the Atlanta pastor wouldn't. What's more important? Stopping the foreclosures, ending war and mass incarceration, reining in the banks and corporadoes, saving the public education and the environment, creating jobs and doing justice? Or protecting and prolonging the career of one man, a man who doesn't protect us?

Bruce A. Dixon is managing editor at Black Agenda Report, and based in Marietta GA, where he serves on the state committee of the Georgia Green Party.

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newstfionline · 4 years ago

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Saturday, April 10, 2021

Grim view of global future offered in intelligence report (AP) U.S. intelligence officials are painting a dark picture of the world’s future, writing in a report released Thursday that the coronavirus pandemic has deepened economic inequality, strained government resources and fanned nationalist sentiments. Those assessments are included in a Global Trends report by the government’s National Intelligence Council, a document produced every four years. This year’s report is designed to help policymakers and citizens anticipate the economic, environmental, technological and demographic forces likely to shape the world through the next 20 years. The document focuses heavily on the impact of the pandemic, calling it the “most significant, singular global disruption since World War II, with health, economic, political, and security implications that will ripple for years to come.” “COVID-19 has shaken long-held assumptions about resilience and adaptation and created new uncertainties about the economy, governance, geopolitics, and technology,” the report says. The report also warns of eroding trust in government and institutions and of a “trust gap” between the general public and the better informed and educated parts of the population.

Volcano on St. Vincent erupts, spewing column of ash amid evacuations (Washington Post) The 4,049-foot La Soufrière volcano erupted on St. Vincent early Friday, sending a more than two-mile high cloud of ash bellowing above the tropical Caribbean island just hours after surrounding communities were ordered to evacuate. Low visibility caused by volcanic debris was hampering the effort to transport residents to safety, officials said. Satellite images and photos shared on social media images captured a thick column rising from the active volcano that began erupting at 8:41 a.m. Plumes of brown ash and smoke drifted higher as they moved northeast, reaching at least 38,500 feet into the atmosphere, nearing the altitude at which many commercial aircraft fly. No deaths or injuries have yet been reported. On Thursday, authorities announced that La Soufrière was an “imminent” threat to erupt. Residents near La Soufrière began evacuating the island’s “red zone” on Thursday by traveling to nearby islands, boarding cruise ships or moving into emergency shelters on other parts of St. Vincent. About 5,000 to 6,000 people live in the affected areas.

Rioters ignore pleas for calm as violence flares in Belfast (AP) Gangs of youths threw stones and fireworks at police in Belfast who hit back with water cannons as violence flared again on the streets of Northern Ireland. Unrest has erupted over the past week amid tensions over post-Brexit trade rules and worsening relations between the parties in the Protestant-Catholic power-sharing Belfast government. The latest violence Thursday night came despite appeals by U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Irish Premier Micheal Martin and U.S. President Joe Biden for a calming of tensions. Britain’s split from the EU has highlighted the contested status of Northern Ireland, where some people identify as British and want to stay part of the U.K. while others see themselves as Irish and seek unity with the neighboring Republic of Ireland, an EU member.

Britain’s Prince Philip dies, spent seven decades at Queen Elizabeth’s side (Reuters) Prince Philip, Queen Elizabeth’s husband and a pivotal figure in the British royal family for almost seven decades, has died aged 99, Buckingham Palace said on Friday. The Duke of Edinburgh, as he was officially known, had been by his wife’s side throughout her 69-year reign, the longest in British history. During that time he earned a reputation for a tough, no-nonsense attitude and a propensity for occasional gaffes. A Greek prince, Philip married Elizabeth in 1947. He went on to play a key role in modernising the monarchy in the post-World War Two period, and behind the walls of Buckingham Palace was the one key figure the queen could turn to and trust. Philip spent four weeks in hospital earlier this year for treatment for an infection and to have a heart procedure, but returned to Windsor in early March. He died just two months before he was to celebrate his 100th birthday.

EU-Turkey tensions (Foreign Policy) Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi labeled Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan a dictator while discussing the Turkish government’s very public snub of EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during a meeting in Istanbul earlier this week. In a meeting with European Council President Charles Michel and the Turkish President, von der Leyen was relegated to a sofa along with the Turkish foreign minister while Erdogan and Michel sat together in prepared chairs—a break from previous protocol. “With these, let’s call them what they are—dictators—with whom one nonetheless has to coordinate, one has to be frank when expressing different visions and opinions,” Draghi said. Turkey has pushed back against accusations of a sexist snub, saying that the seating was arranged according to the EU’s demands.

Myanmar junta limits internet, seizes satellite TV dishes (AP) An information blackout under Myanmar’s military junta worsened Thursday as fiber broadband service, the last legal way for ordinary people to access the internet, became intermittently inaccessible on several networks. Authorities in some areas have also started confiscating satellite dishes used to access international news broadcasts. Protests against the Feb. 1 coup that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi continued Thursday despite the killing of 11 people by security forces a day earlier.

Kim Jong Un warns North Korea of hardship, referencing deadly 1990s famine (NK News) In a rare admission, Kim Jong-un has used a party speech to warn of upcoming hardships caused by the pandemic, U.S. sanctions and natural disasters. The North Korean leader ominously compared the situation to the historic famine that killed at least 225,000 people in the country in the 1990s.

Loud debates, fun banter: Mideast finds outlet in Clubhouse (AP) They are boisterous, argumentative and at times downright hilarious. Hundreds of thousands of people in the Arab world are turning to Clubhouse, the fast-growing audio chat app, to mock and vent against longtime rulers, debate sensitive issues from abortion to sexual harassment, or argue where to find the best and cheapest shawarma sandwich during an economic crisis. More than 970,000 people from the Middle East have downloaded the new platform since it launched outside the U.S. in January. It has offered space for in-person conversations in an age where direct contact is at the mercy of the pandemic and it’s brought together those at home and the many in exile or abroad. But mostly, it has offered a release for bottled-up frustration in a region where violent conflicts and autocrats have taken hold and where few, if any, avenues for change—or even for speaking out—seem tenable. “It is an open coffeehouse that pierces through what is forbidden by the political regimes in the region,” said Diana Moukalled, a Lebanese journalist who closely follows social platforms. “Clubhouse has made people go back to debating one another.”

Where Boars Hog the Streets (NYT) The wild pigs of Haifa might not fly, but they seem to do almost everything else. The boars snooze in people’s paddling pools. They snuffle across the lawns. They kick residents’ soccer balls and play with their dogs. They saunter down the sidewalks and sleep in the streets. Some eat from the hands of humans, and they all eat from the trash. The wild boars of Haifa, in short, are no longer particularly wild. Once largely confined to the many ravines that slice through this hilly port city on the Mediterranean, the boars have become increasingly carefree in recent years and now regularly venture into built-up areas, undeterred by their human neighbors. “It became like an everyday thing,” said Eugene Notkov, 35, a chef who lets his dog play with the boars that putter around the local parks. “They’re a part of our city,” he added. Bumping into one is “like seeing a squirrel.” For some, the boars are a menace, and the Council is to blame for their continued presence. For others, they are a charming addition to an already unusual place.

A 3,000-Year-Old ‘Lost City’ May Be New Boon for Egypt Tourism (Bloomberg) Archaeologists in Egypt have discovered a 3,000-year-old “lost city” buried under the sands in Luxor, home to the Nile Valley’s famed Valley of the Kings, the latest pharaonic-era wonder to be unearthed as the country seeks to revive its tourism industry. The city, known as the “The Rise of Aten,” dates to the reign of Amenhotep III which began around 1,390 BC, and was later used by successors including Tutankhamun, according to a statement on Thursday from the Egyptian mission that made the find. “The discovery of this lost city is the second most important archaeological discovery since the tomb of Tutankhamun,” Betsy Bryan, professor of Egyptian art and archeology at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, said in the statement. It offers “a rare glimpse into the life of the Ancient Egyptians at the time where the empire was at its wealthiest,” she said.

Seed monopolies (Deutsche Welle) For thousands of years of human agriculture, the intrinsic nature of a seed—the capacity to reproduce itself—prevented it from being easily commodified. Grown and resown by farmers, seeds were freely exchanged and shared. All that changed in the 1990s when laws were introduced to protect new bio-engineered crops. Today, four corporations—Bayer, Corteva, ChemChina and Limagrain—control more than 50% of the world’s seeds. These staggering monopolies dominate the global food supply. “Seeds are ultimately what feed us and the animals we eat,” Jack Kloppenburg, a rural sociologist and professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said. “Control over seeds is, in many ways, control over the food supply. The question of who produces new plant varieties is absolutely critical for the future of all of us.”

The Healing Power of Music (NYT) “Focus on the sound of the instrument,” Andrew Rossetti, a licensed music therapist and researcher said as he strummed hypnotic chords on a Spanish-style classical guitar. “Close your eyes. Think of a place where you feel safe and comfortable.” Music therapy was the last thing that Julia Justo, a graphic artist who immigrated to New York from Argentina, expected when she went to Mount Sinai Beth Israel Union Square Clinic for treatment for cancer in 2016. But it quickly calmed her fears about the radiation therapy she needed to go through, which was causing her severe anxiety. “I felt the difference right away, I was much more relaxed,” she said. The healing power of music—lauded by philosophers from Aristotle and Pythagoras to Pete Seeger—is now being validated by medical research. It is used in targeted treatments for asthma, autism, depression and more, including brain disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy and stroke. Live music has made its way into some surprising venues, including oncology waiting rooms to calm patients as they wait for radiation and chemotherapy. It also greets newborns in some neonatal intensive care units and comforts the dying in hospice. While musical therapies are rarely stand-alone treatments, they are increasingly used as adjuncts to other forms of medical treatment. They help people cope with their stress and mobilize their body’s own capacity to heal.

Adventures in a crate (Foreign Policy) A British man is searching for two long lost friends who shipped him across the world in a wooden crate in 1965. Then-19-year-old Brian Robson came to Australia on a work program in 1964 before quickly becoming homesick. Unable to afford a flight home, he and the two friends came up with a scheme to ship Robson to London in a crate. He was packed in with nothing more than with a flashlight, a bottle of water, a small suitcase, a pillow, an empty bottle (“for obvious reasons”) and a hammer to break out. The operation quickly went awry (in more ways that can fit in this summary). Robson endured five days being shuttled from airport to airport, eventually ending up thousands of miles from his destination, in Los Angeles. After security personnel decided he was not a threat, he was then flown home first class, for free, by Pan American Airlines. Robson, who has written a book about his adventure, is now seeking to reconnect with the friends that sent him on his way. He can only recall their first names and their Irish nationality; the rest is lost to time. “I’d love to find them again,” he told CBC radio.

#headlines #news

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feelingbluepolitics · 5 years ago

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"A trio of far-right, pro-gun provocateurs is behind some of the largest Facebook groups calling for anti-quarantine protests around the country, offering the latest illustration that some seemingly organic demonstrations are being engineered by a network of conservative activists.

"The Facebook groups target Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York, and they appear to be the work of Ben Dorr, the political director of a group called 'Minnesota Gun Rights,' and his siblings, Christopher and Aaron. By Sunday, the groups had roughly 200,000 members combined, and they continued to expand quickly, days after [t]rump endorsed such protests by suggesting citizens should 'liberate' their states.

"The Dorr brothers manage a slew of pro-gun groups across a wide range of states, from Iowa to Minnesota to New York, and seek primarily to discredit organizations like the National Rifle Association as being too compromising on gun safety. Minnesota Gun Rights, for instance, describes itself as the state’s 'no-compromise gun rights organization.'

..."The online activity instigated by the brothers helps cement the impression that opposition to the restrictions is more widespread than polling suggests. Nearly 70 percent of Republicans said they supported a national stay-at-home order, according to a recent Quinnipiac poll. Ninety-five percent of Democrats backed such a measure in the survey.

"Still, the Facebook groups have become digital hubs for the same sort of misinformation spouted in recent days at state capitol buildings — from comparing the virus to the flu to questioning the intentions of scientists working on a vaccine.

"Public-health experts say stay-at-home orders are necessary to slow the spread of the new coronavirus, which has already killed more than 40,000 in the United States. The [t]rump administration last week outlined three phases for states to reopen safely — guidelines contradicted by [trump] when he urged citizens to rise up against the rules that heed the recommendations of his own public-health advisers.

..."Facebook said Sunday it did not remove the groups or events partly because states have not outlawed the activity. Organizers also have called for 'drive-in' protests, in keeping with recommendations that people keep a short distance between each other. In other cases, involving protests planned for states like New Jersey and California, the company has removed that content, Facebook said.

"'Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organized on Facebook. For this same reason, events that defy government’s guidance on social distancing aren’t allowed on Facebook,' said Andy Stone, a spokesman for the company.

..."'Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine' was created on Wednesday by Ben Dorr. His brother Christopher is the creator of 'Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine,' as well as 'Ohioans Against Excessive Quarantine.' A third brother, Aaron, is the creator of 'New Yorkers Against Excessive Quarantine.'

"The online coordination offered additional clues about how the protest activity is spreading nationwide, capturing the imagination of [trump] and of Fox News even though it represents the views of a small minority of Americans. [t]rump himself tied the protests to gun rights — a primary cause for the Dorr brothers — in telling Virginians that the Second Amendment was 'under siege' as he urged them to liberate the state.

..."On the ground, pro-[t]rump figures — including some who act as surrogates for his campaign — as well as groups affiliated with prominent conservative donors have helped organize and promote the demonstrations.

"Some of the most vehement protest activity, in Michigan, has been organized by the Michigan Conservative Coalition. Its founders are a Republican state lawmaker and his wife, Meshawn Maddock, who sits on the [t]rump campaign’s advisory board and is a prominent figure in the 'Women for Trump' coalition.

"Jeanine Pirro, a Fox News host and avid [t]rump supporter, interviewed Maddock on her show Saturday, telling her, 'Keep going. Thank you.' Tucker Carlson, another Fox host, featured Maddock last week. 'Thank you for coming on tonight, and thank you for exercising your constitutionally protected rights as an American,' he told her. 'Bless you.'

"Also promoting the demonstrations — including spending several hundred dollars to advertise the event on Facebook — was the Michigan Freedom Fund, which is headed by Greg McNeilly, a longtime adviser to the DeVos family. He served as campaign manager for Dick DeVos, the husband of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, when he ran unsuccessfully for governor of Michigan in 2006.

"The state’s Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer, who has become a target for [t]rump and his conservative allies, last week criticized the nonprofit, noting that it was 'funded in large part by the DeVos family,' and saying it was 'really inappropriate for a sitting member of the United States *resident’s cabinet to be waging political attacks on any governor, but obviously, on me here at home.'

..."In certain cases, the Dorr brothers have bypassed rules requiring them to register as lobbyists by arguing that they are instead involved in 'pro-gun grassroots mobilization,' as 'Ohio Gun Owners,' whose board Chris Dorr directs, describes its work.

"A now-retired state legislator in Iowa, who in 2017 sought to close a loophole allowing the brothers to skirt lobbying rules, said he was not surprised the Dorr brothers were involved in fomenting resistance to the public-health precautions.

"'The brothers will do anything to fan the flames of a controversial issue, and maybe make a quick nickel,' said the former state legislator, Republican Clel Baudler.

"Nearly 97,000 people had joined 'Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine' by Sunday afternoon, a Facebook group.

"Dozens of other Facebook pages, groups and events similarly promote protests targeting stay-at-home orders in state capitals nationwide. Permitting some of this content — including coordinated efforts on the part of conservative activists — marks a break with Facebook’s strict new rules governing content about the pandemic.

"Zachary Elwood, a former professional poker player and now a Portland, Ore.-based writer for software companies who blogs about disinformation and tracked some of the activity by the Dorr brothers, urged Facebook to crack down on small clusters of users coordinating seemingly disparate activity, especially when the activity involves harmful untruths.

"'It’s understandable that people are upset about the difficult situation we’re in, but they’re clearly being riled up by people with an obvious anti-government agenda,' Elwood said. 'Facebook shouldn’t make it so easy to do that.'"

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