#campaign-journal

[thedaddycomplex]

So, about that 2024 campaign coverage

I'm a former journalist and I'm fucking pissed at news networks… and myself. You see, 24-hour news networks are, by definition, hypocritical. Why? Because news doesn't happen 24-hours a day. Seriously, watch early CNN broadcasts. It's mostly just reporters repeating the same block of news over and over. So, very early on these networks found they had to fill time. That's because networks are expensive to run and ad dollars are critical.

Hence, CNN's endless breathless reporting of plane crash conspiracies, MSNBC's nightly parade of uncontested right-shaming, and Fox's straight-up admission that the majority of its programs are opinion, not news. (It's the only honest thing the network has ever said.) It's all a game to keep viewers so the ad dollars don't go away. Each network has their own game and it works. And we're kinda willing participants.

I mean, I personally can't watch Fox News because it angers me (not in the way they want). But, I was a loyal MSNBC viewer. I appreciated Rachael Maddow's deep-dives, Chris Hayes' quips, Joy Reid's righteous anger. It made me feel better to hear them dissect Trump's outlandish speeches. I was a member of the choir and they were preaching to me. It wasn't an echo chamber, it was an echo cathedral — huge, loud, and full of uplifting hymns.

The press is called the Fourth Estate because it's supposed to keep power in check and to inform the public. Back in the day, when rich white dudes bought a newspaper company, it was a point of pride, not a point of revenue. It was how they showed off — they helped the public, kept power in check, owned a business that lost money — because all papers did — and were still rich. (Now, rich white dudes buy and/or make spaceships. Wheeee!)

That shifted after the turn of the century when owners insisted papers turn a profit and even more dramatically with the creation of 24-hour news networks. And that's why Fox News just wants to keep its viewers scared and angry — profit, not watchdogging. And if fear is Fox's game, it's abundantly clear that left-leaning networks like MSNBC want to keep viewers happy and optimistic, even in the face of evidence that should frighten them. It keeps us watching and ad money flowing.

Yes, fellow lefties, even "liberal news" networks are guilty of this. It'd be a lie for anyone to claim otherwise. And that's why Trump's victory was such a surprise to us. I realized my cathedral had ignored actual reporting to keep me happy. Because an entire electorate's seismic shift this far to the right can not be done in secret. Real reporting should have seen that coming. But, the 24-hour news networks wanted us to smile, laughing with the anchors. KA-CHING!

And as a former journalist, I should've known to seek news elsewhere. In hindsight, I'd much rather have fact-based reporting than the giggly opinion panels and proselytization that filled MSNBC's campaign coverage. So, I encourage you to add news outlets like AP News and Reuters into your news diet. (And check bias with this chart.)

As for me, I'm leaving the echo cathedral. Bye, MSNBC. It was fun when it really shouldn't have been.

[askarsjustsoswedish]

Flashing Gifs // Alexander Skarsgård - Mackage Spring Campaign - 20 Feb '24. Thanks Mackage.com (x), and Skarsjoy.

Alex takes an extra step and I have to make a new gifset, lol. It was worth it for the last one though 😍

[tokenmenagerie]

Burglar or Explorer, which starting equipment would you pick? 🧭 🗝️

[coolthingsguyslike]

After two years on The Edge, involuntary retirement is a hard thing to cope with. I tried it for a while, in Woody Creek, but three weeks without even a hint of crisis left me so nervous that I began gobbling speed and babbling distractedly about running for the U.S. Senate in '74.

[beseeingyouinmydreams]

Are there any journalist out there than can explain to me why all of the news outlets continue to report that Liam had multiple drugs including pink cocaine in his system when it was proven that was not the case? Why is there a smear campaign after he’s dead?

[cloud-ya]

for someone who's not interested in replaying games to max their contents out the moment I finish the main story, shadow generations is coming along pretty good

[blackbackedjackal]

Considering how popular Gundam and Gundam model kits are I'm still so surprised how niche Zoids still is? It's Gundam + Pokémon some of the extra special ones have little robot dinosaur souls that live inside them.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Matt Wuerker

* * * *

"We're not weird."

August 10, 2024

Robert B. Hubbell

I am watching the Harris-Walz rally in Arizona as I write this newsletter on Friday evening. The venue is packed, and the crowd is wildly enthusiastic. Tim Walz delivered an even more enthusiastic speech than when he was introduced in Philadelphia on Tuesday. (Who knew? Where has this guy been hiding?)

But the most striking takeaway is the look of pure joy and happiness on Kamala Harris’s face as she delivers her remarks. She is genuinely enjoying herself as she delivers hopeful remarks and plays off the energy of the crowd.

Trump, on the other hand, used his press conference yesterday to predict the “end of days,” including an economic depression and World War III. And on Friday evening, he was reduced to telling his MAGA supporters, “We’re not weird.” It's hardly a compelling campaign slogan, but Trump has to work with what he’s got.

Which message is more likely to motivate voters to turn out at the ballot box? If the trends in the polls and the reaction of crowds at rallies are any indication, the momentum strongly favors Harris and Walz.

Kamala Harris has led the most remarkable political turnaround in American history for which she (and Joe Biden’s immediate endorsement) deserve tremendous credit. But there is much work to be done. We know that Republicans will sow chaos to interfere with a Democratic victory. That is why we must do everything in our power to ensure that Kamala Harris wins the presidency by a wide margin. We must convert enthusiasm into votes.

To state the obvious, converting enthusiasm into votes is a much better problem than fighting a pervasive sense of impending doom. We must not deceive ourselves about the level of effort and organization being demanded of us. But as we engage in the hard work of converting enthusiasm into votes, we should do so with a sense of hope, confidence, and joy.

For the second weekend in a row, we can look to the future unburdened by the anxiety that dragged us down for so long. I will go into the weekend with the image of Kamala Harris’s joyful remarks to an enthusiastic crowd in a swing state that is now back in play. It doesn’t get much better than that!

Coda to yesterday’s press event at Mar-a-Lago.

First, if you have not watched Lawrence O’Donnell’s analysis of the media's collective failure in its reporting on Trump’s press event at Mar-a-Lago on Thursday, I urge you to do so. Lawrence O’Donnell’s segment is destined to become a classic of broadcast television that rivals the statement during the McCarthy hearings by Army lawyer Joseph Welch, “Have you no sense of decency?”

I guarantee that if you watch the segment, it will deepen your understanding of how the media enabled Trump’s initial rise and continued viability despite an attempted coup, inciting an insurrection, attempted bribery of Ukraine, refusal to return national defense documents, and two impeachments. See Lawrence: 'Stupidest' candidate Trump did not answer reporters' questions (msnbc.com).

Two post-debate developments underscore the bizarre nature of the press event yesterday.

Were reporters mere props at Trump’s press event on Thursday?

Susan Glasser published an analysis in The New Yorker, Does Anyone in America Miss Joe Biden as Much as Donald Trump? Glasser’s analysis included this shocking statement:

Trump summoned handpicked members of the media to Mar-a-Lago for a press conference, the point of which was to change the subject from Harris’s remarkable honeymoon.

If true, the hand-picked journalists were used as props by Trump in a propaganda event. Worse, they knew they were props but played their assigned role nonetheless.

If true, that fact would explain the journalists' odd complacency, the obsequious nature of the questions, and the lack of follow-up in the face of obvious lies.

I say “If true” because I can find no separate confirmation of Glasser’s statement. But someone should pursue that question. If true, it is a scandal, and every reporter who participated in the sham press event owes an apology to the public.

Was Trump involved in an emergency landing of a helicopter with Willie Brown, the former Speaker of California’s State Assembly?

At the press event, Trump claimed he was in an emergency landing of a helicopter on which California Speaker Willie Brown was a passenger. Trump told the story of the near crash in a helicopter to frame a story that Willie Brown told him something negative about Kamala Harris during that helicopter ride. Trump said of Willie Brown, “He told me terrible things about her.” (Kamala Harris and Willie Brown dated in the 1990s. )

Willie Brown told the media that he was not on a helicopter with Trump that was forced to make an emergency landing. The NYTimes published a story on Thursday titled, That Time Trump Nearly Died in a Helicopter Crash? Didn’t Happen. (This article is accessible to all.)

The Times’ story makes clear that “several elements of the story” do not stand up to scrutiny, including the claim that Willie Brown was on the helicopter with Trump.

On Friday, Trump threatened to sue the NYTimes, claiming that he had flight records to back up his story.

So, this is interesting. Trump is either doubling down on his lie, or the NYTimes published a story with false statements.

As of Friday, it appears that Trump is doubling down on his lie—a fact that became clear when another Black politician—Nate Holden—told Politico that he was on the helicopter ride with Trump that was forced to make an emergency landing. See Politico, The other Black politician who says he was with Trump in that near-fatal chopper crash.

So, it appears that Trump has confused two Black politicians from California. And the Black politician who was on the helicopter ride with Trump told Politico the following:

Before he hung up with Politico, Holden assured a reporter that nobody discussed—let alone criticized—Kamala Harris as Trump claimed Brown did.

“He either mixed it up,” Holden said. “Or, he made it up. This was just too big to overlook. This is a big one. Conflating Willie Brown and me? The press is searching for the real story and they didn’t get it. You did.”

The most reasonable inferences are (a) Trump confused two Black politicians from California, and (b) there was no discussion of Kamala Harris on the helicopter ride.

Now that Trump has threatened to sue the Times for defamation over the story, perhaps the Times will show more interest in documenting Trump’s lies.

A final bizarre aspect of this story occurred on Friday. Trump told the New York Times he was going to sue the Times and asserted that he had flight records to prove his story. Here is the Times’ account of the exchange:

“We have the flight records of the helicopter,” Mr. Trump insisted Friday, saying the helicopter had landed “in a field,” and indicating that he intended to release the flight records, before shouting that he was “probably going to sue” over the Times article. When asked to produce the flight records, Mr. Trump responded mockingly, repeating the request in a sing-song voice. As of early Friday evening, he had not provided them.

So, Trump is doubling down on his story that Willie Brown told him “terrible things” about Kamala Harris and has descended into a childish mocking of the Times’ reporter asking for records of some elements of Trump’s story.

While this story may seem overly complicated and like a tempest in a teapot, the fact that Trump has put the Times’ credibility on the line could be a tipping point for the Times to begin holding Trump to a standard for veracity that it applies to all other politicians. That would be a welcome development, indeed!

[Late update: In a Truth Social post late Friday, Trump attacked Maggie Haberman of the New York Times over the story, calling her “Maggot Hagerman.” Looks like the gloves may be coming off.]

[Robert B. Hubbell Newsletter]

[koeiasequoia]

Koeia Growing Magic Item

Chimera Horn Collar: A black leather collar, lined with soft red fur from a chimera's mane, in place of a tag is a chunk of teal horn

Item Level 1: While wearing this adorable leather collar, you may take the help action as a reaction on another creature's turn anytime an ally within 5 ft of you would make a skill check in which you are proficient. You gain advantage on checks to maintain concentration on [Hunter's Mark]. You can summon the teal horns of your master to grace your head, this adds +1 to intimidate checks (can turn on/off at will with no time limit)

Item Level 2: Can cast [Shield] and [Absorb Elements] at 1st level a shared number of times = 1/2 of your proficiency bonus rounded up . You restore 1 use per short rest and all uses on a long rest. You can make weapons from horn magic, these weapons deal the type and damage of associated weapons; they count as magic for the purposes of overcoming resistances, and they are considered as simple/martial weapons. Creating or dismissing one of these counts as a weapon draw object interaction; weapons have a +value equal to 1/2 of your proficiency bonus rounded down. These weapons disappear at the end of your turn if they are not in your hand.

Item Level 3: Gain the ability [Chimera's Rage]. If you have Barbarian's [Rage] as well, you can activate or maintain both in the same bonus action, and you can automatically enter [Chimera's Rage] if you were already in Barbarian's [Rage] when you become bloodied. [Chimera's Rage] doesn't break [Hunter's Mark], Barbarian's [Rage] still does

Item Level 4: Regain 1 use of [Unleash Incarnation] per short rest, If there are no enemies within melee reach of your Echo then it can make a ranged attack on a creature within 120ft of you that both of you can see, this attack deals 1d8 + your Dex modifier. Upcasting [Hunter's Mark] increases the damage to 2d6 for 3rd level, 3d6 for 5th, 4d6 for 7th, and 5d6 for 9th level slots. Once per long rest, you may cast [Hunter's Mark] at 5th level without expending a spellslot

Item Level 5: Can cast [Teal Wind Strike] 3 times per long rest. Additionally, this collar holds 3 charges, which recharge each night at midnight. While attuned to this collar, you may expend a single charge to cast the [Blink] spell, or expend 3 charges to cast the [Teleport] spell. When cast in this way, these spells do not require a spell slot or material components. You gain the [Echo Interception] Ability. Increase the range at which you land a critical hit by +1

================================================

[Chimera's Rage] - as a Bonus Action while you are not wearing Heavy Armor, when you are at 1/2hp or when you land a critical hit, enter a focused rage that gives you Fire and Force damage resistance, adds a d4 of fire damage, at 9th level also adds a d4 of force damage, and then at 17th level upgrades both d4s to d6s. While [Chimera's Rage] is active you heal equal to half your proficiency bonus rounded up at the beginning of each turn.

[Echo Interception] - you can make your echo throw itself in front of an attack directed at another creature that you can see that is within 30 feet your echo. Before the attack roll is made, you can use your reaction to teleport the echo to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the targeted creature. The attack roll that triggered the reaction is instead made against your echo.

You can use this feature 2 times, and you regain 1 use on a short rest, and all uses on a long rest.

[Teal Wind Strike]

Magic Collar Perk

Casting Time: 1 action

Range: 30 feet

Components: S, M (a melee weapon made of Lynch's Horn Magic)

Duration: Instantaneous

You flourish the weapon used in the casting and then vanish to strike like a blaze. Choose up to five creatures you can see within range. Make a melee spell attack against each target. On a hit, a target takes 3d10 fire and 3d10 force damage.

You can then teleport to an unoccupied space you can see within 5 feet of one of the targets you hit or missed.

================================================

Curse: This collar is cursed, and becoming attuned to it extends the curse to you. As long as you remain cursed, you are unwilling to part with the collar, keeping it within reach at all times. While cursed in this way, each time you are praised by an ally, you gain 1d4 psychic stimulation

[muzetrigger]

Daybreak: On Hydrangea and Sakura

Here: my thoughts on Hydrangeas, Hanami, MCR, Cloning, the Military-Industrial Complex, 2000's America nostalgia, how Japan ripped off China, why Chrysanthemums are gay, picnics, the origins of a double bell curve age demographic, and how my favorite character that I wrote is just a broken mess of girl.

All for the low low price of absolutely free!

I wish I had the time that all these notes on a finished campaign journal suggest that I had…

(I love these hydrangeas)

[icedcoffeeandsleepdeprivation]

This was SO MUCH FUN.

And all my stuff is pink! And I got adorable new dice with 🦄🦄 on the inside!! 😍😍😍

[askarsjustsoswedish]

Flashing gifs // Alexander Skarsgård - Mackage Spring Campaign - 20 Feb '24. Thanks Mackage.com (x), and AlexanderSkarsgard_Archive Instastory.

I never knew a man could look so sexy in a mac until now!

[dreamyprinx]

y’all remember when I made a language for my whimsy world and then never did anything with it and even made a font for it? haha

[tooturtly]

Living for the moment Laudna says she might be a phylactory, and you can fully see Cerrit leap out of Travis with a perfect realization and multiple string board theories being created

[parttimereporter]

TIME mag places historic Trump photo on its cover

23 years ago, George W. Bush graced the cover of Time Magazine after 9/11 holding a flag on the rubble on the World Trade Center Towers.. It felt at the time like a game changer–for better or worse history was altered and a new path was carved..

All these years later, a new historic photo is now etched into our psyche..

Donald Trump, grazed by a bullet in an assassination attempt, now graces a new cover of TIME magazine.. The sky behind him is blue, unliked the Bush imagery of gray and billowing dust clouds.. But the flag is there in the distance, with blood flowing down Trump’s face..

In both covers, the right arm is extended high into the sky. Both in acts of defiance..

And both moments in time feel the same. While the path we embark on now as a nation is very different than it would have been, something feels like it is dramatically different and altered.

Living through history.

In 2001 the nation was just on edge as we are now–maybe even more so then. But we survived. The path worked out.

Let’s see where this new road takes us.

[stuartprincess]

Bullet journal theme this month is maps

If anyone needs a hand-drawn fantasy map, my commish slots are open lmao