#political reading

[thesweetestdevotion]

do u think trump will ever be assasinated or taken out the way other presidents were? like whats his outcomes going to be like for this coming year and was his attempted assasination a distraction / hoax or preplanned to take him out? thanks v much again!

Trump General Reading for 2025:

(ive been wondering this too, so im glad you asked lol)

Assasination:

Was it planned?: The Lovers Reversed, Seven of Swords, The Empress Reversed, The King of Cups Reversed, Seven of Coins

Immediately I’m getting that it wasn’t planned, or at least not in the way suggested here. I see an energy of displeasure, unhappiness, of a promise broken. the perpetrator came out as the king of cups reversed, and this tells me that there was a deep discontented feeling within him. Especially when the lovers and empress also came out reversed. there was something that made the perpetrator feel betrayed, maybe a decision made by trump? Or something that trump promised that did not pan out in the way this person wanted. I think this led him to sneak around and plan out this whole thing, but it was definitely on an individual level. I dont see this person being connected to anyone else. actually its almost like he’s severed form others, I see him as a figure standing in a dark room, alone. I think he was someone who was extremely angry and felt betrayed, it may have had to do with his ideals differing from trumps at some point, and also trump disappointing him. Though i see that this attempt inadvertently led to benefits for trump, what with all the fanfare and attention he got from it.

Will it happen again?: Ten of Swords Reversed, Ten of Cups, Knight of Pentacles Reversed, The magician, King of Pentacles Reversed, Four of Cups reversed

I don’t think something like this will happen again, at least if it does it wont be in the same way that happened in the past. I see trump has been strengthened by not just his survival, but his win of the presidency and the support he gained due to it. Trump right now is very well protected by those around him. If you ask me i think he may be safer than he was in his first presidency. though i see this protection is conditional. I think trump has promised many people many different things and if he fails to act or does something that displeases the people around him he will be more vulnerable. I see right now he’s like a valuable pawn, that is not acting on his own interest but rather the ones of the people who have supported and protected him. I see him being pulled in all sorts of directions, which i don’t think he minds. trump seems like the type of person to not necessarily be personally invested in a specific outcome, rather he follows where the money and power is. I think he’s happier this way, doing the things other’s want from him and in turn benefiting from their power and influence. He feels very empowered right now that’s for sure.

His outcomes for the next year (2025): The Hierophant Reversed, Two of Coins, Queen of Cups, Five of Wands, Eight of Swords, Judgement reversed, Seven of Wands reversed, Ace of Wands

I see him reaching a stalemate at some point?? It’s like he’s gonna have trouble balancing two sides at once, and this will lead him to be a bit stuck. Someone, probably a woman but mostly a feminine energy will step into the picture, and this will lead him to be conflicted in a choice he needs to make. I think this will lead him to be heavily criticized by some people and it could even lead to a battle between the interested parties of this situation. I think he wants to please too many people at once, especially this queen of cups, and I see him taking a route that is not ‘traditional or just doing something that is out of the bounds of normality for a president to do. That being said this is something trump does quite often so its not too strange coming from him. I just see him being able to win whatever battle this is, he somehow always comes out on top its actually insane. But i also see him not doing the things we expect him to do, or backing out of certain plans? In nit sure what those are because i feel heavy all of a sudden and my neck started to ache. I think whatever this future looks like its heavily protected at this time. Though i think he’s gonna surprise a lot of people, on both sides of the political spectrum, this year.

I really want to o see what this energy is. Perhaps ill do a follow up reading after some months pass by! I hope this isn’t too messy, or looks like I’m a trump supporter or something 😭 i like to remain neutral when I’m doing my readings, but i hope i dont come off as sympathetic bc I’m literally not lmao 💀 lmk if you have any questions!

[yourbelgianthings]

if you get a chance, please read this short article titled "Harm Reduction Voting" vs. Independent Working-Class Politics. i think it offers a good explanation of language that has become convoluted and watered down and the best way to engage with the electoral system while it still exists (to clarify it is USA centric but can be applied to other places with a two party system)

(tagging @jeannie-youre-a-tragedy :3 i know u care about and rb a lot of this stuff)

[emilianadarling]

- Timothy Snyder. The first and perhaps most important lesson from On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons for the Twentieth Century (2017)

Snyder's new book, On Freedom, was published in 2024.

[mysharona1987]

[memecatwings]

arguably one of the funniest things to do as a democratic lawmaker in the deep south

[v0idwraith]

quite frankly idgaf what Luigi Mangione’s politics are, he actually did something to make a change and that’s more than most people can say

[captainjonnitkessler]

Me: In November, either Trump or Biden will win. There is no third outcome, so we should vote accordingly for the option that will mitigate the most harm.

The people in my notes: Oh, so you think direct action is bad? You think voting is literally the only thing we can do? You hate activism? You love Biden and endorse everything he does and think nobody should criticize him ever? You think voting will just magically solve all our problems? You think protesting is wrong? You love the status quo and think everything is fine?

[myblogforbooks123]

I'm seeing very few people talk about this, but Project 2025 threatens to get rid of the Department of Education. This would allow increased parental control into what's being taught in the classroom, and will only increase book bans. Please, if you know a child in your life, get a book into their hands. Give them banned books. Give them books about any topic being taken out of schools. Take them to the library. Pirate ebooks for them. Donate your own books. Don't let their education be taken away.

[queerpunktomatoes]

Here is a list of books that Project 2025 is looking to ban and the reasons for each.

These are the books they are afraid of. These are the books we need to be reading.

[philsmeatylegss]

To everyone in red states where book bans are likely to take place soon, here’s some lists for you <3

As a history student going into library science, people way under hype how crazy book banning is

A follow up post I beg you to also read.

Multiple lists of books already banned in schools/libraries or ones that likely will be:

Banned Books Week 2024: 100 of the Most Challenged Books

Banned Books: Top 100

Banned Book List

Colorado Banned Book List

The Complete List of Banned & Challenged Books by State

Banned Books from the University of Pennsylvia Online Books Page

Top 10 Most Challenged Books in 2023

PEN America Index Of School Book Bans – 2023-2024

Challenged and Banned Books

Places to order books other than Amazon:

Internet Archive (free)

Libby (free with library card)

Thrift Books

Book Outlet

BookBub

Abe Books

Half Price Books

Barnes & Noble

Better World Books

PangoBooks

Book Finder

Goodwillbooks

Alibris

Places to support that fight against book banning:

American Library Association

Unite Against Banned Books

National Coalition Against Censorship

PEN America

There’s a reason politicians fight so hard to limit knowledge and it should scare you.

Some recs below based on reviews I’ve seen

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sing by Maya Angelou

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson

Melissa by Alex Gino

Looking for Alaska by John Green

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

All Boys Aren't Blue by George Matthew Johnson

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe

All American Boys by Jason Reynolds

And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

Flamer by Mike Curato

Let's Talk About It: The Teen's Guide to Sex, Relationships, and Being a Human by Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan

Lawn Boy by Jonathan Evison

This Day in June by Gayle E. Pitman

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds

Sex is a Funny Word by Cory Silverberg

Prince & Knight by Daniel Haack

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

Drama by Raina Telgemeier

This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sanchez

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

Beloved by Toni Morrison

[esspurrr]

not a new observation by any means but it still blows my mind how whenever a natural disaster happens in a supposed Bad State every white gay city slicker will be cheering about it like its actual 4 year old morality. grow the fuck up

[inkskinned]

you know, you know. no gods, no masters, no kings on pedestals. everyone is fallible. death of the author. you know! you are balanced about your intake of media - you allow the wiggle room, the grace, the gratitude, the skepticism. nobody above criticism.

but still. a weird gut-punch feeling, something akin to betrayal. you read the article. surprise! an author you love is actually: a serial fucking predator.

well, shit. what now. no, you knew he was a person (all people are), but now you're wondering - what have i overlooked by accident? what messages have i internalized that are strange and cruel? and also, like, what the fuck?

his actions lay a thick glaze on top of everything. like each place is now ruined, opaque in a new way. but okay, fine, you've done this before. you knew better, right? you've been betrayed by many a cherished childhood author.

still, this stickiness. fuck. can you pick up that book again. will you read it to your children. you've recommended it to others - will you ever do that again? and of course, of course, no parasocial relationships. you were theoretically above this kind of sentiment. but the artist informs the art, right.

so it's not something as clear-cut as feeling he owed you, specifically (a stranger) better behavior - just that you kind of, in a distant and odd way... sort of trusted him to do better. it's not like a real trust or something speakable, just the faint hope that the product (good books) was a thin representation of the soul. now it feels like the product (good? books?) was a mask. in some small or insignificant way, your previous support of this person lent them power. your money and your time and your laughter.

and the thing is - you have this terrible, echoing sensation. how many times will this happen? over and over. you find out that the singer you love is actually a predator. you learn over drinks that your favorite high school english teacher is in jail for what he did to her. you listen to the news idly and suddenly discover that a woman you used to idolize has been abusing her kids for an actual eon.

what can you touch without the static melting off. you can't even really complain about it too much (you were supposed to know better, and besides, you don't want the same re-split "it's not your fault, love what you love" basic advice), but now it's here. somehow, it feels like - you let him into your life.

it's not that things need to be pure or an artist has to be like, endlessly perfect, mindful. demure. it's more just this terrible truth that has been replayed through your veins so often it feels criminally vain. power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely. did you want any one person to be worth that power?

it's just that he wrote books where he seemed to understand that. he seemed to know about hierarchies and unfair systems and bigotry and privilege. you thought they were books about what it means to struggle. you thought they were about having power and still using it for good rather than for control. he spooned you a narrative of being a good guy, a kind soul. you fucking bought what that fucking monster sold.

maybe that's why they were fantasies, after all.

[doomdoomofdoom]

Kamala Harris does want "transgender surgery on illegal aliens that are in prison", btw.

So since Trumpists are getting mad enough about the jokes to actually cite their sources, I thought I'd put the source out into my left extremist commie faggot echo chamber, too.

The claim originates from an ACLU questionnaire she filled out for her 2020 presidential candidacy, specifically this section:

She wasn't given a new questionnaire for 2024, and has stated that while her policy on some things may have changed, her values had not. (This most likely means she moved more to the center to appease larger demographics and cut corners to reach compromises. The basic politician stuff.)

It boils down to this: If you're in prison, whether for "illegal" immigration or other crimes, you rely on the state to provide you with necessary amenities, like food and health care. Her argument isn't "hell yeah everyone in prison should get sex changes for free". It's "gender affirming surgery is a necessary medical procedure. If you are in the states care while this becomes necessary, the state should provide it." If you're outraged by your tax money being used on this, consider the massive amount of people being incarcerated in for-profit prisons, on your dime. Then ask yourself if maybe a prison reform might be in order.

Worth noting: In 2015, while Attorney General, Kamala Harris actually argued against providing gender-affirming surgery to an incarcerated trans woman, claiming that HRT and psychotherapy were sufficiently covering her medical needs. She has since obviously changed her stance and assumed responsibility. (I would like to take this moment to remind my fellow left extremist commie faggots that "willingness to learn and rethink your views" is infinitely more valuable than "perfect from the start and unwilling to listen to anyone")

Also found in the source: This image of Kamala Harris participating in the 2019 San Francisco Pride Parade, wearing what I believe to be a sequin rainbow embroidered denim jacket.

I encourage you to read the provided CNN article and the answers to the ACLU questionnaire, as they give great insight into her values.

TLDR: Based.

[atissi]

kras mazov lookin ass

[incognitopolls]

This is specifically asking about how your enjoyment of the work has changed based on your knowledge of the author's politics. Vote based on that, not based on whether you think the quality of the work itself has gone down.

TERF = trans exclusionary radical feminist. JK Rowling has been very openly anti-transgender in recent years and has poured unfathomable amounts of money into funding anti-trans legislation in the UK.

–

We ask your questions so you don’t have to! Submit your questions to have them posted anonymously as polls.

[badolmen]

They don’t even attempt to assassinate US politicians anymore. You notice that? Not since the anthrax scare back for… who was it, Barack? And even that… pathetic. This new generation has no respect for an honest hitman. I’m not sure this new generation has any honest hitman - you see that shit with Boeing? Sloppy, fucking disgraceful - you kill the whistleblowers before they get halfway to a lawsuit. What kind of fucking amateur is doing faked suicides the night before testimony? Goddamn greenhorns. Back in my day someone tried to shoot Ronald Reagan in broad daylight. There used to be bomb threats to Congress. I took out a few union leaders in the utilities sector myself. Today’s generation? Won’t even threaten to throw a punch - not even over on that - what’s it now, ‘X’? They got no guts. None! And they don’t even have poor impulse control to boot! Too much of that - that panopticon anxiety bullshit. “Oh what if I get a called out post???” People used to send the president letters full of bioweapons. In the mail! Today’s generation? Not a chance. All because of woke.