#this democracy runs on clown rules

[your-local-grinning-cat]

I’ve been in a gifting mood lately instead of a pranking mood…

Apparently the unbirthday spirit is strong in me right now! 💪🥳

I’ve already gifted the sneky-snek man so…

*chuckles at my description for Azul* I haven’t really interacted with him yet… Heeheehee…

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

October 26, 2024

Heather Cox Richardson

Oct 27, 2024

Beginning in 1943, the War Department published a series of pamphlets for U.S. Army personnel in the European theater of World War II. Titled Army Talks, the series was designed “to help [the personnel] become better-informed men and women and therefore better soldiers.”

On March 24, 1945, the topic for the week was “FASCISM!” 

“You are away from home, separated from your families, no longer at a civilian job or at school and many of you are risking your very lives,” the pamphlet explained, “because of a thing called fascism.” But, the publication asked, what is fascism? “Fascism is not the easiest thing to identify and analyze,” it said, “nor, once in power, is it easy to destroy. It is important for our future and that of the world that as many of us as possible understand the causes and practices of fascism, in order to combat it.”

Fascism, the U.S. government document explained, “is government by the few and for the few. The objective is seizure and control of the economic, political, social, and cultural life of the state.” “The people run democratic governments, but fascist governments run the people.” 

“The basic principles of democracy stand in the way of their desires; hence—democracy must go! Anyone who is not a member of their inner gang has to do what he’s told. They permit no civil liberties, no equality before the law.” “Fascism treats women as mere breeders. ‘Children, kitchen, and the church,’ was the Nazi slogan for women,” the pamphlet said. 

Fascists “make their own rules and change them when they choose…. They maintain themselves in power by use of force combined with propaganda based on primitive ideas of ‘blood’ and ‘race,’ by skillful manipulation of fear and hate, and by false promise of security. The propaganda glorifies war and insists it is smart and ‘realistic’ to be pitiless and violent.” 

Fascists understood that “the fundamental principle of democracy—faith in the common sense of the common people—was the direct opposite of the fascist principle of rule by the elite few,” it explained, “[s]o they fought democracy…. They played political, religious, social, and economic groups against each other and seized power while these groups struggled.”  

Americans should not be fooled into thinking that fascism could not come to America, the pamphlet warned; after all, “[w]e once laughed Hitler off as a harmless little clown with a funny mustache.” And indeed, the U.S. had experienced “sorry instances of mob sadism, lynchings, vigilantism, terror, and suppression of civil liberties. We have had our hooded gangs, Black Legions, Silver Shirts, and racial and religious bigots. All of them, in the name of Americanism, have used undemocratic methods and doctrines which…can be properly identified as ‘fascist.’”

The War Department thought it was important for Americans to understand the tactics fascists would use to take power in the United States. They would try to gain power “under the guise of ‘super-patriotism’ and ‘super-Americanism.’” And they would use three techniques: 

First, they would pit religious, racial, and economic groups against one another to break down national unity. Part of that effort to divide and conquer would be a “well-planned ‘hate campaign’ against minority races, religions, and other groups.”

Second, they would deny any need for international cooperation, because that would fly in the face of their insistence that their supporters were better than everyone else. “In place of international cooperation, the fascists seek to substitute a perverted sort of ultra-nationalism which tells their people that they are the only people in the world who count. With this goes hatred and suspicion toward the people of all other nations.” 

Third, fascists would insist that “the world has but two choices—either fascism or communism, and they label as ‘communists’ everyone who refuses to support them.”

It is “vitally important” to learn to spot native fascists, the government said, “even though they adopt names and slogans with popular appeal, drape themselves with the American flag, and attempt to carry out their program in the name of the democracy they are trying to destroy.” 

The only way to stop the rise of fascism in the United States, the document said, “is by making our democracy work and by actively cooperating to preserve world peace and security.” In the midst of the insecurity of the modern world, the hatred at the root of fascism “fulfills a triple mission.” By dividing people, it weakens democracy. “By getting men to hate rather than to think,” it prevents them “from seeking the real cause and a democratic solution to the problem.” By falsely promising prosperity, it lures people to embrace its security.

 “Fascism thrives on indifference and ignorance,” it warned. Freedom requires “being alert and on guard against the infringement not only of our own freedom but the freedom of every American. If we permit discrimination, prejudice, or hate to rob anyone of his democratic rights, our own freedom and all democracy is threatened.” 

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

+

Steve

I am profoundly appreciative of your work Professor Richardson – thank you.

It’s all coming into view this week isn’t it – the fascist playbook? Polls so close that no matter whether Harris wins by a small or large margin the GOP will cry foul ; local election boards that are corrupted ; a whole range of legal teams the GOP has lined up to challenge the election’s legality ; a stacked Supreme Court ; threats of violence against election officials ; the odious Elon Musk putting his thumb heavily on the scale ; the collusion with Putin and the compromising of our national security as Trump and Musk connive with a murderous dictator ; the desire of that same dictator for revenge, which is nothing less than the destruction of the US.

What will the US do without access to health care for women ? What will it do once the Right imposes its perverse view of history and education on our schools and universities, when the Florida model of repression goes national ? What will families do with no social security ? What misery will be visited on them when tariffs cause untold stress on already tight household budgets ? What environmental damage will come from a know-nothing attitude towards climate change, and the gutting if not outright elimination of NOAA and the early warning system for hurricanes ?

What will happen if they succeed in building their camps, and deport millions ? How will they try to hide the likely humanitarian catastrophe that will ensue ? What will happen to basic rights when police departments are further militarized and given a green light to arbitrarily treat citizens as they please ? What will happen as a lawless president pardons January 6th rioters ? Will he also pardon militia members who intimidate or even shoot peaceful protesters ? How long will people endure armed repression coupled with economic misery, before they themselves organize against it ?

What will the economy look like as the US exits NATO and leaves Europe to Putin ? What will happen to the US as the EU, an entity that helps sustain a robust US economy, is plunged into war as Putin gobbles up the Ukraine, the Baltics, and makes a play for Poland ? What will the nuclear powers of France and Britain do as remaining fellow NATO members are invaded ?

But the most important questions I have are more philosophical and humanistic : How can so many well-educated people be so cruel and reckless as to entrust these monsters – a Trump, a Musk, and at this late date, a Putin – with their futures ? How can the historic memory of Boomers be so short and insouciant as to forget the lessons of the 1930s and 1940s ? How can people be filled with such blind hate that they will die on the hill of a Trump, rather than on the hill that will expand rights, economic opportunity, and keep the planet livable ?

If you think this is hyperventilating, that is merely because I have taught about this sort of thing my entire life. Authoritarians will lie about everything – their racism, their sexism are based on lies, their patriotism and their piety utterly false. But the cruelty they tell you they intend to inflict ? That is almost always the only truth they tell.

[spyral-out-keep-going]

Dr. Richardson, political historian, is once again providing a short history lesson - this time on fascism from 1945. All the text is below, but wanted to highlight a few parts.

…

…

October 26, 2024 (Saturday)

Beginning in 1943, the War Department published a series of pamphlets for U.S. Army personnel in the European theater of World War II. Titled Army Talks, the series was designed "to help [the personnel] become better-informed men and women and therefore better soldiers."

On March 24, 1945, the topic for the week was “FASCISM!”

“You are away from home, separated from your families, no longer at a civilian job or at school and many of you are risking your very lives,” the pamphlet explained, “because of a thing called fascism.” But, the publication asked, what is fascism? “Fascism is not the easiest thing to identify and analyze,” it said, “nor, once in power, is it easy to destroy. It is important for our future and that of the world that as many of us as possible understand the causes and practices of fascism, in order to combat it.”

Fascism, the U.S. government document explained, “is government by the few and for the few. The objective is seizure and control of the economic, political, social, and cultural life of the state.” “The people run democratic governments, but fascist governments run the people.”

“The basic principles of democracy stand in the way of their desires; hence—democracy must go! Anyone who is not a member of their inner gang has to do what he’s told. They permit no civil liberties, no equality before the law.” “Fascism treats women as mere breeders. ‘Children, kitchen, and the church,’ was the Nazi slogan for women,” the pamphlet said.

Fascists “make their own rules and change them when they choose…. They maintain themselves in power by use of force combined with propaganda based on primitive ideas of ‘blood’ and ‘race,’ by skillful manipulation of fear and hate, and by false promise of security. The propaganda glorifies war and insists it is smart and ‘realistic’ to be pitiless and violent.”

Fascists understood that “the fundamental principle of democracy—faith in the common sense of the common people—was the direct opposite of the fascist principle of rule by the elite few,” it explained, “[s]o they fought democracy…. They played political, religious, social, and economic groups against each other and seized power while these groups struggled.”

Americans should not be fooled into thinking that fascism could not come to America, the pamphlet warned; after all, “[w]e once laughed Hitler off as a harmless little clown with a funny mustache.” And indeed, the U.S. had experienced “sorry instances of mob sadism, lynchings, vigilantism, terror, and suppression of civil liberties. We have had our hooded gangs, Black Legions, Silver Shirts, and racial and religious bigots. All of them, in the name of Americanism, have used undemocratic methods and doctrines which…can be properly identified as ‘fascist.’”

The War Department thought it was important for Americans to understand the tactics fascists would use to take power in the United States. They would try to gain power “under the guise of ‘super-patriotism’ and ‘super-Americanism.’” And they would use three techniques:

First, they would pit religious, racial, and economic groups against one another to break down national unity. Part of that effort to divide and conquer would be a “well-planned ‘hate campaign’ against minority races, religions, and other groups.”

Second, they would deny any need for international cooperation, because that would fly in the face of their insistence that their supporters were better than everyone else. “In place of international cooperation, the fascists seek to substitute a perverted sort of ultra-nationalism which tells their people that they are the only people in the world who count. With this goes hatred and suspicion toward the people of all other nations.”

Third, fascists would insist that “the world has but two choices—either fascism or communism, and they label as ‘communists’ everyone who refuses to support them.”

It is “vitally important” to learn to spot native fascists, the government said, “even though they adopt names and slogans with popular appeal, drape themselves with the American flag, and attempt to carry out their program in the name of the democracy they are trying to destroy.”

The only way to stop the rise of fascism in the United States, the document said, “is by making our democracy work and by actively cooperating to preserve world peace and security.” In the midst of the insecurity of the modern world, the hatred at the root of fascism “fulfills a triple mission.” By dividing people, it weakens democracy. “By getting men to hate rather than to think,” it prevents them “from seeking the real cause and a democratic solution to the problem.” By falsely promising prosperity, it lures people to embrace its security.

“Fascism thrives on indifference and ignorance,” it warned. Freedom requires “being alert and on guard against the infringement not only of our own freedom but the freedom of every American. If we permit discrimination, prejudice, or hate to rob anyone of his democratic rights, our own freedom and all democracy is threatened.”

Source: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/jaGejETqvzHSFbNZ/?mibextid=WC7FNe

[yourreddancer]

Heather Cox Richardson 10.26

Beginning in 1943, the War Department published a series of pamphlets for U.S. Army personnel in the European theater of World War II. Titled Army Talks, the series was designed “to help [the personnel] become better-informed men and women and therefore better soldiers.”

On March 24, 1945, the topic for the week was “FASCISM!” 

“You are away from home, separated from your families, no longer at a civilian job or at school and many of you are risking your very lives,” the pamphlet explained, “because of a thing called fascism.” But, the publication asked, what is fascism? “Fascism is not the easiest thing to identify and analyze,” it said, “nor, once in power, is it easy to destroy. It is important for our future and that of the world that as many of us as possible understand the causes and practices of fascism, in order to combat it.”

Fascism, the U.S. government document explained, “is government by the few and for the few. The objective is seizure and control of the economic, political, social, and cultural life of the state.” “The people run democratic governments, but fascist governments run the people.” 

“The basic principles of democracy stand in the way of their desires; hence—democracy must go! Anyone who is not a member of their inner gang has to do what he’s told. They permit no civil liberties, no equality before the law.” “Fascism treats women as mere breeders. ‘Children, kitchen, and the church,’ was the Nazi slogan for women,” the pamphlet said. 

Fascists “make their own rules and change them when they choose…. They maintain themselves in power by use of force combined with propaganda based on primitive ideas of ‘blood’ and ‘race,’ by skillful manipulation of fear and hate, and by false promise of security. The propaganda glorifies war and insists it is smart and ‘realistic’ to be pitiless and violent.” 

Fascists understood that “the fundamental principle of democracy—faith in the common sense of the common people—was the direct opposite of the fascist principle of rule by the elite few,” it explained, “[s]o they fought democracy…. They played political, religious, social, and economic groups against each other and seized power while these groups struggled.”  

Americans should not be fooled into thinking that fascism could not come to America, the pamphlet warned; after all, “[w]e once laughed Hitler off as a harmless little clown with a funny mustache.” And indeed, the U.S. had experienced “sorry instances of mob sadism, lynchings, vigilantism, terror, and suppression of civil liberties. We have had our hooded gangs, Black Legions, Silver Shirts, and racial and religious bigots. All of them, in the name of Americanism, have used undemocratic methods and doctrines which…can be properly identified as ‘fascist.’”

The War Department thought it was important for Americans to understand the tactics fascists would use to take power in the United States. They would try to gain power “under the guise of ‘super-patriotism’ and ‘super-Americanism.’” And they would use three techniques: 

First, they would pit religious, racial, and economic groups against one another to break down national unity. Part of that effort to divide and conquer would be a “well-planned ‘hate campaign’ against minority races, religions, and other groups.”

Second, they would deny any need for international cooperation, because that would fly in the face of their insistence that their supporters were better than everyone else. “In place of international cooperation, the fascists seek to substitute a perverted sort of ultra-nationalism which tells their people that they are the only people in the world who count. With this goes hatred and suspicion toward the people of all other nations.” 

Third, fascists would insist that “the world has but two choices—either fascism or communism, and they label as ‘communists’ everyone who refuses to support them.”

It is “vitally important” to learn to spot native fascists, the government said, “even though they adopt names and slogans with popular appeal, drape themselves with the American flag, and attempt to carry out their program in the name of the democracy they are trying to destroy.” 

The only way to stop the rise of fascism in the United States, the document said, “is by making our democracy work and by actively cooperating to preserve world peace and security.” In the midst of the insecurity of the modern world, the hatred at the root of fascism “fulfills a triple mission.” By dividing people, it weakens democracy. “By getting men to hate rather than to think,” it prevents them “from seeking the real cause and a democratic solution to the problem.” By falsely promising prosperity, it lures people to embrace its security.

 “Fascism thrives on indifference and ignorance,” it warned. Freedom requires “being alert and on guard against the infringement not only of our own freedom but the freedom of every American. If we permit discrimination, prejudice, or hate to rob anyone of his democratic rights, our own freedom and all democracy is threatened.” 

THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT MAGA RETHUGLIKKKONS UNDER THEIR CREAMSICLE STALIN HAVE TRIED TO DO!!!

[misfitwashere]

October 26, 2024 

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

OCT 27

Beginning in 1943, the War Department published a series of pamphlets for U.S. Army personnel in the European theater of World War II. Titled Army Talks, the series was designed “to help [the personnel] become better-informed men and women and therefore better soldiers.”

On March 24, 1945, the topic for the week was “FASCISM!” 

“You are away from home, separated from your families, no longer at a civilian job or at school and many of you are risking your very lives,” the pamphlet explained, “because of a thing called fascism.” But, the publication asked, what is fascism? “Fascism is not the easiest thing to identify and analyze,” it said, “nor, once in power, is it easy to destroy. It is important for our future and that of the world that as many of us as possible understand the causes and practices of fascism, in order to combat it.”

Fascism, the U.S. government document explained, “is government by the few and for the few. The objective is seizure and control of the economic, political, social, and cultural life of the state.” “The people run democratic governments, but fascist governments run the people.” 

“The basic principles of democracy stand in the way of their desires; hence—democracy must go! Anyone who is not a member of their inner gang has to do what he’s told. They permit no civil liberties, no equality before the law.” “Fascism treats women as mere breeders. ‘Children, kitchen, and the church,’ was the Nazi slogan for women,” the pamphlet said. 

Fascists “make their own rules and change them when they choose…. They maintain themselves in power by use of force combined with propaganda based on primitive ideas of ‘blood’ and ‘race,’ by skillful manipulation of fear and hate, and by false promise of security. The propaganda glorifies war and insists it is smart and ‘realistic’ to be pitiless and violent.” 

Fascists understood that “the fundamental principle of democracy—faith in the common sense of the common people—was the direct opposite of the fascist principle of rule by the elite few,” it explained, “[s]o they fought democracy…. They played political, religious, social, and economic groups against each other and seized power while these groups struggled.”  

Americans should not be fooled into thinking that fascism could not come to America, the pamphlet warned; after all, “[w]e once laughed Hitler off as a harmless little clown with a funny mustache.” And indeed, the U.S. had experienced “sorry instances of mob sadism, lynchings, vigilantism, terror, and suppression of civil liberties. We have had our hooded gangs, Black Legions, Silver Shirts, and racial and religious bigots. All of them, in the name of Americanism, have used undemocratic methods and doctrines which…can be properly identified as ‘fascist.’”

The War Department thought it was important for Americans to understand the tactics fascists would use to take power in the United States. They would try to gain power “under the guise of ‘super-patriotism’ and ‘super-Americanism.’” And they would use three techniques: 

First, they would pit religious, racial, and economic groups against one another to break down national unity. Part of that effort to divide and conquer would be a “well-planned ‘hate campaign’ against minority races, religions, and other groups.”

Second, they would deny any need for international cooperation, because that would fly in the face of their insistence that their supporters were better than everyone else. “In place of international cooperation, the fascists seek to substitute a perverted sort of ultra-nationalism which tells their people that they are the only people in the world who count. With this goes hatred and suspicion toward the people of all other nations.” 

Third, fascists would insist that “the world has but two choices—either fascism or communism, and they label as ‘communists’ everyone who refuses to support them.”

It is “vitally important” to learn to spot native fascists, the government said, “even though they adopt names and slogans with popular appeal, drape themselves with the American flag, and attempt to carry out their program in the name of the democracy they are trying to destroy.” 

The only way to stop the rise of fascism in the United States, the document said, “is by making our democracy work and by actively cooperating to preserve world peace and security.” In the midst of the insecurity of the modern world, the hatred at the root of fascism “fulfills a triple mission.” By dividing people, it weakens democracy. “By getting men to hate rather than to think,” it prevents them “from seeking the real cause and a democratic solution to the problem.” By falsely promising prosperity, it lures people to embrace its security.

 “Fascism thrives on indifference and ignorance,” it warned. Freedom requires “being alert and on guard against the infringement not only of our own freedom but the freedom of every American. If we permit discrimination, prejudice, or hate to rob anyone of his democratic rights, our own freedom and all democracy is threatened.” 

—

[wyrmfedgrave]

Trump predicts the end of U.S. democracy if he loses 2024 election | Reuters

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-predicts-end-us-democracy-if-he-loses-2024-election-2024-03-17/

Violence is now expected from both, the For Reich Republikkkans & Leftist Democrats!!

Whoever wins will be facing the built up fury of the 'loser's' extremists!!

So, if you're going to DC on Election Day - be prepared to defend yourself...

This is the 'event' that the Rump hopes will finally put his ass back in the White House!

Hopefully, whoever's in charge of security will have enough troops to back up their defense of the capital.

Worse, you can bet that they'll have to also expect violence at the very polls!!

That means Reich henchmen in liberal states - not just where Republikkkans now rule.

The Leftists aren't quite as large a group, so they'll probably just try to defend the polls in liberal states...

The Feds will have their hands full fighting off both sides.

Though, the Feds might use Leftist troops - if their own forces are spread too thin.

As is now usual, with the way tRump runs his campaigns, expect several dirty tricks to the election...

More than what his cultists & enablers tried in 2020.

Also, don't be surprised if the Orange Clown has already bought off or has threatened the Electoral College.

This are the climes that tRump has forced us into.

And, it won't stop - even if we are able to separate Rump's head from its body!

Too many Reich Republikkkans now have the same evil dream of conquest as the Rump.

We might be forced to cleanse their whole Party - via legal suits & martial means...

Just be prepared to protect your own family & friends.

And Vote that Rump off of our island...

[wwwstrangersandpoetrycom]

Democracy And Freedom

The sick bastards running the show Don’t like being exposed, These are the evil clowns Inching towards ruling the world Under the façade of inclusion, Equity, equality, democracy And freedom, How many kids Have they killed in Ukraine, As they lick their own lips At the prospect of billions Of profit in restoration, Or as the assholes say, Build Back Better, This isn’t their first…

[verycleverboy]

Arizona fraudit update: “Not even a shred of being salvaged at this point”

The headline is “It’s over,” but let’s face it, it’s never going to be over over. The point of the Arizona “audit” was never to get answers, but to feed more fuel to the full-throttle retreat from reality.

Anyway, as the Treason Party clown car rolls on, the Associated Press checks in:

Arizona Republicans’ partisan review of the 2020 election results got off to a rocky start when their contractors broke rules for counting ballots and election experts warned the work was dangerous for democracy.

When the auditors stopped the counting and returned the ballots this week, it hadn’t gotten better. In the last week alone, the only audit leader with substantial election experience was locked out of the building, went on the radio to say he was quitting, then reversed course hours later. The review’s Twitter accounts were suspended for breaking the rules. A conservative Republican senator withdrew her support, calling the process “botched.” And the lead auditor confirmed what was long suspected: that his work was almost entirely paid for by supporters of Donald Trump who were active in the former president’s movement to spread false narratives of fraud.

All this came nearly 100 days into a process that was supposed to take “about 60 days,” according to the Senate Republicans who launched it. And it’s not over yet. Contractors are now producing a report on the findings that could take weeks or more to write.

The turmoil casts even more doubt on the conclusions of what backers describe as a “forensic audit” but what experts and critics say is a deeply flawed, partisan process.

“Not even a shred of being salvaged at this point,” said Sen. Paul Boyer, the first Republican state senator to publicly come out against the audit in May. “They’ve botched it at so many points along the way that it’s irrecoverable.”

Boyer’s opposition became less lonely last weekend when another Republican, Sen. Michelle Ugenti-Rita, one of the Legislature’s strongest advocates for stricter voting laws, agreed that “the Trump audit” was “botched.” Along with all 14 Democrats, a majority of the Senate, which commissioned the audit, is now against it.

“I wanted to review our election processes and see what, if anything, could be improved,” Ugenti-Rita wrote on Twitter. “Sadly, it’s now become clear that the audit has been botched.”

(continue reading)

Meanwhile, the story continues, head of CyberNinjas Doug Logan, a man who openly advocates phony electoral conspiracies running a company with absolutely no experience in vote tallying operations which has been made the company in charge of this particular vote tallying operation, finally came clean about who was paying for his team. “[A] whopping $5.7 million had been contributed by political groups run by prominent Trump supporters including Michael Flynn, Sidney Powell, Patrick Byrne and correspondents from One America News Network. The figure dwarfs the $150,000 to be paid by the Senate.“ 

For those of you who have forgotten who those people are (out of self-preservation, if nothing else):

Michael Flynn was very briefly Trump’s national security advisor, and the first to fall  the Trump era asserted itself. Before the Trump administration, he was considered an American hero in many quarters. By 2021, he was a QAnon believer who encouraged the 45th president to impose martial law nationwide, effectively advocating an armed coup to nullify the results of the 2020 election. His latest public appearance was joking about political assassination after being presented an AR-15 by a California church. He has thus fully embraced his destiny of being an American traitor.

Sidney Powell is the former Trump campaign lawyer (and chief counsel on United States v. Flynn before the Trump pardon kicked in) whose voter fraud suit in Michigan was dismissed last December on the grounds that it was "nothing but speculation and conjecture". She is expected to be sanctioned over her participation in that bad faith lawsuit, and also has been subpoenaed to appear in Dominion Voting’s defamation suit against Fox News.

Patrick Byrne is a Trump ally who was the founder of Overstock.com, and in the grand tradition of Trump allies, he resigned as Overstock CEO in 2019 after it was revealed that he was in an intimate relationship with a Russian spy. He is very into the “Deep State” conspiracy theories, and was one of the speakers at the January 6th Trump rally which turned into a mob assault on the Capitol.

One America News Network (OANN) is a proud promoter of conspiracy theories, outright lies, and (another grand tradition of the Trump era) Russian-funded disinformation campaigns. I’ve strived mightily to stay away from their shit, but by all accounts they’re a “news outlet” in the same way I’m “a totally ripped bodybuilder”. That is, some of the required parts are there, but they aren’t being used in a way that would justify the description. Because I’m a lazy bum who sat out the first 100 days of the Biden administration, it’s easier to link their rap sheet on Wikipedia than build one of my own. And yes, at least one of their on-air talent keeps popping up on the Southern Poverty Law Center’s radar for his links to the white supremacist movement and his signal boosting of Russian government disinformation.

I can think of a number of other points in American history where this wouldn’t be a great look for the Republican party, or the health of the American system in general. But present day, present time? It’s just background noise, and that’s one of those things that should keep you awake at night.

[helsanon]

Lies and Deception - A new Helsa small (part) story

Hello!

This is a small 'greentext' I've written some days ago. Hope you'll enjoy it!

---

Chicago, 1930.

It was a stormy evening. Thunder roared in the sky while heavy droplets of rain assailed my window. Lightning flashed its light inside my room. Or better yet, my office.

A tall blonde, dressed in dark clothes, leans her right tight on her desk. She plays a bit with her long braid while looking at the weather outside her room.

I am Detective Elsa Àrnadalr, a Norwegian immigrant trying a new life in the so-called ‘land of freedom’. No heavy hand of the aristocracy ruled here, but the fair touch of democracy. The problem is that with freedom comes leniency and, with leniency, crime.

The Prohibition, set on by the government a decade ago, started the Age of the Gangsters. Organized crime of the worst kind, smuggling alcohol from other countries and owning illegal distilleries. The gangsters were the aristocracy of this new world… or so they thought.

I am a descendant of the royal kings and queens of Norway. These gangsters are just newly-riches living in debauchery and excess as much as they can. Sadly, that also involves enforcing ‘protection’, kidnapping, torturing, and executions. Sometimes, I catch myself thinking if my decision to leave Arendelle was the correct one. It sure was way safer than the greatest city in the Midwest, but also too… peaceful. I’m too young to spend my days doing nothing of importance.

Elsa lights a cigar, exhaling a smoky breath while admiring the illuminated city through the window.

I left behind my dear sister, Anna. She’s a recently wed girl, married to a local town businessman involved in the ice market. He’s a simple, but gentle soul. I trust Anna will have a happy marriage with him, although certainly with lesser stature than if she looked for someone else. Can’t blame her, as I have yet to find someone in my life. Since she was engaged with Kristoff, she bugs me to find someone, too. Have yet to feel the need… So many things run through my mind every day, I don’t have time to deal with that.

These last days, the popularity of Prohibition has been thrown into the gutter. The same people who believed life without alcohol would create a better society now ask for it to return, after living under the rule of the mob. Shocking, isn’t it?

Elsa reaches a small cupboard, pricking a bottle of wine and two glasses from there. She serves herself a bit of it and leaves the empty glass on her desk. Sitting on her chair, she opens up the newspaper.

” MURDER! Three found dead at the Old Irish. Police have no clues…” Of course, the police never have a fucking clue. Most of them are in the pockets of Al Capone or his rivals. Looks like I’ll have to get down there and make a living for myself.

As soon as Elsa puts out her cigar and stands up, a strong lightning bolt flashes and a shadow can be seen through the opaque window of the door. It’s a tall man, with a hat and a greatcoat. The man gently knocks.

“Come in, please.” The blonde presses a button under her desk, turning the lights on.

The door opens with a creak, revealing more of the mysterious man. He is indeed a tall fella! Not as Kristoff, though.

The man wears a big greatcoat, dark brown as his hat, and a black briefcase is seen in his right hand. His heavy boots are a bit dirty and wet; he promptly scrubs the soles on the rug and enters. He takes off his hat and does a courteous greeting.

” Lady Árnadalr, a pleasure as always.”

Oh, no. Not him.

In front of her, a smile full of lies greets her. Green eyes filled with malice and planning. A sweet voice, perfectly honeyed to deal with whoever he needs to talk to. And, just like her, he’s a descendant of a royal line and came to the United States looking for more in his life. However, he took a different path… one that Elsa knew it would bring only trouble to him – and anyone crossing his path.

His most striking features, however, were his flame-red hair and the out-of-fashion sideburns. They added a bit of eccentricity to him that, allied to his backstory and streetwise, made him irresistible.

” What can I do for you, Lord Westergaard?”

” You already know about the latest murder, of course.”

” Yes, it was the main thing in the newspapers today. What of it?” Elsa pauses a bit, thinking. ”What have YOU with it, Hans?”

” Already dropping the formality, Elsa? Good, good.”

” Stop wasting my time.”

” Oh, I’d never! See, the thing is: one of the victims was a friend of a ‘friend’ of mine. I came here to make use of your services.”

Ugh, the nerve! This clown wants ME to work for HIM! Although I’m in dire need of money… The recent storms caused the Atlantic to be barely navigable and money coming from Norway has been having a bit of difficulty arriving here. Let’s hear him a bit more.

While Elsa was lost in her thoughts, Hans serves himself the other glass.

” Sure, go ahead. It’s not like that bottle is expensive or anything.”

Hans devilishly smiles at her, stirring his glass a bit.

” Oh, where are my manners? Apologies, my lady.” He proceeds to drink it anyway. Elsa crosses her arms, notably angry.

” See, Elsa, my friend will pay you well. All he asks is results and discretion.”

” I’ll give it some thought.” Elsa lights another cigar. Understanding that it was his cue, Hans finishes his glass, opens the briefcase, and puts some papers on Elsa’s desk.

” Here is everything he knows about his pal and the other 2 fellas. If you want to pick this case, you know where to find me.”

” Hans… why did your friend send you instead of coming here himself?”

” Oh, he didn’t ‘send’ me. His dead friend owed me money, and I intend to collect it from whoever finished him off. And I don’t know anyone more suited to discover that than the gorgeous present company.”

Elsa eye-rolled while Hans blinked at her.

” Are you telling me this ‘friend of a friend’ was just jack shit? Why can’t you come up with some honest talk, Hans?”

” I swear everything I said was true! See, no crossed fingers! The problem here is that my friend is someone dealing with dangerous stuff and rather keep a low profile.”

”’ Dangerous stuff’, huh? Like… you?” Elsa points a provocative finger at Hans. He heartily laughs in response.

” That’s why I love talking to you, Elsa.” Grabbing his hat, Hans slowly leaves the room.

Why do I keep up with his shit? God, I need another drink.

[newagesispage]

                                                                AUGUST    2021

THE RIB  PAGE

Fran Drescher is running for National SAG-AFTRA President with Anthony Rapp as secretary treasurer for Unite for Strength!!! Matthew Modine is running under Membership first with Joely Fisher for Secretary Treasurer. Running in local elections are, among others, Yvette Nicole Brown, Shari Belafonte, Rosie O’Donnell, Jeff Garlin, Ezra Knight, Dule Hill, Camryn Manheim, Sara Rue, Mindy Cohn and Ever Carradine. Sept. 2 is the day!** Frances Fisher filed a suit against SAG-AFTRA over the health care plan but a judge rejected it.

*****

Sha’Carri Richardson’s problem is all our problem. No more drug testing for Mary Jane in this country!

*****

Chuck Schumer finally unveiled the Cannabis administration opportunity act to end Federal prohibition of marijuana.

*****

Dolly Parton used the $10 mil + in royalties from the Whitney Houston version of her song to invest in a black neighborhood in Nashville.

*****

Bob Balaban and Henry Winkler play brothers in The French Dispatch!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can’t wait for October 22!!!!!!!!!!!!** The next Wes Anderson film will star Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Adrien Brody and Tom Hanks. No other details are out there yet.

*****

Trees save lives in heat waves.

*****

TBS will bring us n updated Stupid Pet Tricks with Sarah Silverman.

*****

So much organized religion is based on forgeries, fakes and plundering. Virtually none of it is based on any sort of truth, spiritual or even historical. Just lies to fulfill an agenda and control the masses. And so far it has worked. –Larry Charles

*****

Scarlett Johansen has sued Disney cuz her contract guaranteed a theatrical release only.

*****

An expert on the circus industry recently reached out to me and urged me to not compare Trump and his comeback tour to clowns and the circus, as that is an insult to clowns. –Jim Acosta

*****

Eric Adams has won the Dem primary for Mayor in NY.

*****

Have you seen High on the Hog?? It’s awesome!!

*****

Jeff Flake will be ambassador to Turkey.

*****

Cornell West resigned from Harvard with a scathing letter accusing the school of “intellectual and spirited bankruptcy of deep depths.”

*****

Biden gave a hell of a speech in Philly. He needed to go on more about the filibuster but he was passionate about the For the People act and the John Lewis voting rights advancement act.  He roared, “Peddlers of lies are threatening the very foundation of our country.”

*****

Will Celebrity Dating Game continue? I am sure they think romance expert, Michael Bolton is a cute and quirky thing to do but not so much. If it stays, I hope they change the music, at least those final notes. And why are half of the questions, “Who am I?” The show could be cute but they need a little work!!

*****

Jeff Bezos donated $200 mil to the Smithsonian air and space museum.**Feminists everywhere winced when Gayle King was interviewing the Bezos space team.  Bezos commented about the 18 year old going with them into space and that he was just worried about the prom at 18. Gayle said “And I was just hoping for a date to the prom.”** But we have to love Wally Funk, the oldest woman to go into space.**Bezos thanked the Amazon employees and customers for paying for his trip. Yikes!**  Saw a great sign: Pay fair taxes, end hunger, help people, end poverty, save Earth or fly to space.

*****

Antonio Banderas and Harrison Ford will star in Indiana Jones 5.

*****

Zsa Zsa Gabor’s ashes were laid to rest 5 years after her death.

*****

The Britney conservatorship mess is still going thru the courts, and now topless?

*****

Pope Francis underwent colon surgery which caused him to comment on the need for good health care for all.

*****

Questlove brings us Summer of Soul!!!

*****

Reports show that about 150 people were killed by guns in more than 400 shootings during the 4th.

*****

Has anybody ever built a show around the Tex Watson tapes?? The LAPD apparently liked to deny them but there was a book.

*****

Henry Hall is out with his debut album, Neato, along with a tour.

*****

Do all male law enforcement officers have to be bald now?

*****

Idaho has begun an eradication campaign that could slash the number of gray wolves living in the state by 90%.

*****

Hooray for the monthly child tax credit!!

*****

Release Me 2 from Barbra Streisand is due out August 6.

*****

The look into the Jan. 6 insurrection has begun. Kinzinger and Cheney are in. **Tucker Carlson attacked Harry Dunn, a Capitol officer on air. The man protected Carlson’s son, a House staffer.** On Jan. 5, the Steve Bannon podcast went like this: All Hell is going to break loose tomorrow. Just understand this. It’s gonna be moving. It’s gonna be quick.** Why is mainstream media putting nearly all eggs in the Covid and Olympic baskets and only a few on the insurrection hearing?

*****

Why do so many that call America , “great” seem to hate it?? How can one love this country and not want majority rule, not want democracy??

*****

The Emmy noms are out: Lovecraft Country was nominated even though it has been cancelled.  Also hooray for Pose, The Flight attendant and for Conan!! Lead actor is a tough category with Matthew Rhys, Billy Porter and Rege-Jean Page. Aidy Bryant and Jean Smart got lead and supporting noms. I have to route for Ewan McGregor and Anya Taylor-Joy. I am excited for Paul Reiser, Bowen Yang, Evan Peters, Carl Weathers, Renee Elise Golsberry, Dave Chappelle, Helena Bonham Carter and Daniel Levy. There is love for Yvette Nicole Brown, Issa Rae and Maya Rudolph. The Masked Singer got a few noms. The doc category included Tina, Allen V. Farrow and The Bee Gees. Friends: The reunion got 4.

*****

“Voting is not supposed to be easy. That’s what our men died for.”- Jack Finger

*****

Giant Pandas are no longer endangered.

*****

Zalia Avante- Garde is the 93rd Scripps National Spelling Bee Champ.** I’m more impressed by the girl who won the Spelling Bee than the billionaire who went to space. –Mike Jollett.

*****

Why do they have to run erectile dysfunction ads during true crime rape episodes? ** And why do people still say things like, “this just don’t happen here” or “dumped like a piece of trash? “ There have to be other things to say.

*****

Tom Barrack, chairman of the inaugural committee for Trump was arrested for foreign lobbying shenanigans. America first, right?** Wilbur Ross lied to congress about the census and the Trump administration declined to prosecute.** Stephen Calk, bank exec was found guilty of trying to get a WH position by giving Manafort millions in loans.

*****

Jake Ellzey won the Texas special election run off for congress, beating out Trump’s girl Susan Wright.

*****

Every city should have a Peacemobile!!!!!

*****

The Chinese government has been called out for malicious cyber -attacks.  Four officials have been indicted in California.

*****

Miracle Workers’ Simon Rich was there when FB was invented and was so creeped out by people using it to stalk women.

*****

There was a story in Rolling Stone about how Eric Clapton threatened to cancel shows if the venue required proof of vaccines. Valerie Bertinelli tweeted: Once a dick, always a dick.

*****

Every Fox news host is vaccinated. –Mikel Jollett

*****

Toyota has dropped out of Olympic ads.  Contenders are starting to drop out due to positive Covid tests.

*****

Actor Isaiah Stokes has been indicted for murder.

*****

Lionsgate has bought the rights to Clerks 3.

*****

Ready or not, here come the Olympics.- Harry Shearer

*****

The Cleveland Indians will now be the Cleveland Guardians.

*****

A bust of KKK leader Nathan Bedford Forrest was taken out of the Tennessee capitol.

*****

American Housewife was sold into syndication.

*****

The poorest zip codes include Erie, Pennsylvania, Decatur and the south end of Peoria, il, Canton, Oh, Waterbury, Ct., Bonsecour, Al. and Elpaso, Tx.

*****

Issa Rae married Louis Diame.

*****

The court of appeals disqualified Judge John W. Ouderkirk from the Jolie- Pitt divorce because of a business relationship with Pitt’s attorney.

*****

Joe Manchin owns a coal company.

*****

The Hollywood walk of fame has welcomed Jimmy Smits, Kathie Lee Gifford and 90 year old Marla Gibbs. Terry Crews is next!

*****

Generation after generation of women love the bad boy.  Do they never learn? I will never understand, please explain.

*****

Pelosi rejected 2 of the noms to serve on the special committee looking into Jan. 6. Kevin McCarthy withdrew his 5 noms.

*****

The gun that killed Billy the Kid is for sale.

*****

I think you should leave with Tim Robinson on Netflix is hilarious if U get thru the gross. U can’t miss the episode with Clifton Davis and Fred Willard!!

*****

Joaquin Phoenix is trying to get some bears from a traveling show moved to an accredited sanctuary. The Bearadise Ranch in Florida has been cited for, “violating state wildlife laws.”

*****

Go employees Go!! Frito Lay is on strike, Coal miners are on strike and Ride Share drivers are on strike. A good portion of this country should be on strike. The top of the corporate ladder needs to learn! Let those that treat us fair rise to the top.

*****

Who owns Brett Kavanaugh?

*****

A Bishop seeking to deny Biden communion was caught on Grindr.

*****

Gabriel Jagger married Anouk Winzenried.** I don’t know why the Rolling Stones bass player doesn’t just change his name to “not pictured.” –Michael Mckean

*****

Frank Fritz will not be back on American Pickers.

*****

For the first time, astronomers have seen behind a black hole. Einstein predicted the gravitational pull of black holes is so enormous that they warp the very fabric of space. He was right. Scientists have now spotted light which was being emitted by the far side of the black hole.

*****

Look for Heels on Starz.

*****

What is this new screen for Amazon? It sucks.

*****

Biden has signed an executive order to protect infrastructure from cyber- attacks.

*****

Arthur was canceled.

*****

The Kennedy Center has revealed the latest honorees. The 44th class is Justin Diaz, Berry Gordy, Lorne Michaels, Bette Midler and Joni Mitchell and will be held on Dec. 5.

*****

Get well Bob Odenkirk!!!! The fabulous Odenkirk collapsed on the set of Better call Saul from a minor heart attack.

*****

Days alert: We have lost Days of Our Lives first director, Joseph Behar.  He will be missed.** Marla Ginns is joining the cast as Paulina’s Mother. ** Is EJ throwing Sami out? Will AJ McLean join the cast? **Rex is back.**Peacock is bringing us a limited series, Days of our Lives: Beyond Salem that will send many couples on romantic vacations and lead to intrigue. Lisa Rinna will star.** Arianna Zucker (Nicole) is set to marry Shawn Christian (former Daniel).  He popped the question on Father’s Day.

*****

R.I.P. President Jovenel Moise, Philece Sampler, Robert Downey Sr., Richard Donner, flood victims of Belgium and Germany,  Robby Steinhardt, Covid victims, Joseph Behar, Robert Moses, Jackie Mason, Dusty Hill, joey Jordison, Priscilla McMillan, Ron Popeil, Carl Levin, Saginaw Grant and Charles Robinson.

[chaotic-hypnotic-erotic]

Cleaning Up The Bigotry

There are sources of bigotry and hate in the world, who are using the internet to paint a world under right wing rule as some sort of paradise. The likes of 4chan and websites like Worldtruth and Minds are havens for neonazi trolls and clowns, PUAs, MRAs, TERFs and the old fashioned racists, and they are creating their vile lies and disseminating it.

It’s time to start uprooting them, and bathing those sources in education until the juices run clear.

They’re not run by gods, but by people. People who think they’re clever, but still people. They can be stopped, resources denied them, opportunities taken from them. They need to be reminded that they are not normal, and neither is their ideology.

This evil sank its claws into the world as early as 2000, and 9/11 and Desert Storm were just symptoms. Here in the UK, it’s been here since Murdoch took over our papers, and Thatcher came to power, and exonerated Jimmy Savile and Rolf Harris.

Each time we advanced politically, in the Seventies, the Nineties, and when Obama took the White House, there has always been a backlash. Putin. Alex Jones Infowars. 4chan. The Pepe crowd. And the media, coopted by Murdoch and other billionaires, went along with it unchallenged because capitalists have always believed that right wing governents are good for them.

We need to break the media, and break the spell they hold over the West, and to show the world that the worldview the media are promoting is not real.

And we need to uproot whole concepts, like the incorrect assumption that capitalism is the norm for democracies. It isn’t. Capitalism is private individuals. Society is a public place. The State is the people, not Capitalism.

And the right wing are there, mixed in with the capitalists, riding on their coattails, pretending to be like them, hoping we’d be taken in by the lie that the right wing, fascism, is good for society because it is somehow a natural default state for capitalism, and capitalism == the State.

If it takes five years, ten, the rest of my life - I’ll swear to do my best to destroy those lies. One person at a time may be the best I can do; but if we get a better world in 2030, I hope to have done my bit to make that better world happen.

Let’s not sink back into the mire in 2024, or 2028. Biden today; Harris next. Maybe even an Obama after that.

Keep it going. Break the media. Break the spell. Break the cycle. Break the chains.

[virginiakings]

FUCK I CAN ACTUALLY SEE PARALLELS BETWEEN S1 BELLARKE AND HARRY AND ALLIE IN THE SOCIETY.... SOMEONE TELL ME IM NOT CRAZY

like harry and bellamy in s1 thinking they can run the place, that they don’t need order or democracy, being reckless and violent and confrontational towards allie/clarke. then allie and clarke wanting order and rules, being the person people look towards for leadership. but harry/bellamy and allie/clarke want to work together, understand each other better towards the finale and are working through their own issues with how to run things without adult leadership ... except hallie fucked and bellarke didn’t LMAO. omg and clarke and finn could parallel will and allie ????

i’d say this confirmed hallie endgame but bellarke probably aren’t even endgame at this rate so i’m really just clowning myself

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

[Daily Don]

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

May 29, 2023

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

MAY 30, 2023

Beginning in 1943, the War Department published a series of pamphlets for U.S. Army personnel in the European theater of World War II. Titled Army Talks, the series was designed “to help [the personnel] become better-informed men and women and therefore better soldiers.” On March 24, 1945, the topic for the week was “FASCISM!” “You are away from home, separated from your families, no longer at a civilian job or at school and many of you are risking your very lives,” the pamphlet explained, “because of a thing called fascism.” But, the publication asked, what is fascism? “Fascism is not the easiest thing to identify and analyze,” it said, “nor, once in power, is it easy to destroy. It is important for our future and that of the world that as many of us as possible understand the causes and practices of fascism, in order to combat it.” Fascism, the U.S. government document explained, “is government by the few and for the few. The objective is seizure and control of the economic, political, social, and cultural life of the state.” “The people run democratic governments, but fascist governments run the people.” “The basic principles of democracy stand in the way of their desires; hence—democracy must go! Anyone who is not a member of their inner gang has to do what he’s told. They permit no civil liberties, no equality before the law.” “Fascism treats women as mere breeders. ‘Children, kitchen, and the church,’ was the Nazi slogan for women,” the pamphlet said. Fascists “make their own rules and change them when they choose…. They maintain themselves in power by use of force combined with propaganda based on primitive ideas of ‘blood’ and ‘race,’ by skillful manipulation of fear and hate, and by false promise of security. The propaganda glorifies war and insists it is smart and ‘realistic’ to be pitiless and violent.” Fascists understood that “the fundamental principle of democracy—faith in the common sense of the common people—was the direct opposite of the fascist principle of rule by the elite few,” it explained, “[s]o they fought democracy…. They played political, religious, social, and economic groups against each other and seized power while these groups struggled.” Americans should not be fooled into thinking that fascism could not come to America, the pamphlet warned; after all, “[w]e once laughed Hitler off as a harmless little clown with a funny mustache.” And indeed, the U.S. had experienced “sorry instances of mob sadism, lynchings, vigilantism, terror, and suppression of civil liberties. We have had our hooded gangs, Black Legions, Silver Shirts, and racial and religious bigots. All of them, in the name of Americanism, have used undemocratic methods and doctrines which…can be properly identified as ‘fascist.’” The War Department thought it was important for Americans to understand the tactics fascists would use to take power in the United States. They would try to gain power “under the guise of ‘super-patriotism’ and ‘super-Americanism.’” And they would use three techniques: First, they would pit religious, racial, and economic groups against one another to break down national unity. Part of that effort to divide and conquer would be a “well-planned ‘hate campaign’ against minority races, religions, and other groups.” Second, they would deny any need for international cooperation, because that would fly in the face of their insistence that their supporters were better than everyone else. “In place of international cooperation, the fascists seek to substitute a perverted sort of ultra-nationalism which tells their people that they are the only people in the world who count. With this goes hatred and suspicion toward the people of all other nations.” Third, fascists would insist that “the world has but two choices—either fascism or communism, and they label as ‘communists’ everyone who refuses to support them.” It is “vitally important” to learn to spot native fascists, the government said, “even though they adopt names and slogans with popular appeal, drape themselves with the American flag, and attempt to carry out their program in the name of the democracy they are trying to destroy.” The only way to stop the rise of fascism in the United States, the document said, “is by making our democracy work and by actively cooperating to preserve world peace and security.” In the midst of the insecurity of the modern world, the hatred at the root of fascism “fulfills a triple mission.” By dividing people, it weakens democracy. “By getting men to hate rather than to think,” it prevents them “from seeking the real cause and a democratic solution to the problem.” By falsely promising prosperity, it lures people to embrace its security. “Fascism thrives on indifference and ignorance,” it warned. Freedom requires “being alert and on guard against the infringement not only of our own freedom but the freedom of every American. If we permit discrimination, prejudice, or hate to rob anyone of his democratic rights, our own freedom and all democracy is threatened.” And if “we want to make certain that fascism does not come to America, we must make certain that it does not thrive anywhere in the world.” Seventy-eight years after the publication of “FASCISM!” with its program for recognizing that political system and stopping it from taking over the United States, President Joe Biden today at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, honored those who gave their lives fighting to preserve democracy. “On this day, we come together again to reflect, to remember, but above all, to recommit to the future our fallen heroes fought for, …a future grounded in freedom, democracy, equality, tolerance, opportunity, and…justice.” “[T]he truest memorial to their lives,” the president said, is to act “every day to ensure that our democracy endures, our Constitution endures, and the soul of our nation and our decency endures.”

—

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[From Comments]

TCinLA

Writes Thats Another Fine Mess

Within a matter of a few years of the publication of "FASCISM!" the authors were under investigation by the resurgent Republican right as "communist agents". It happened right in front of everyone and he only ones who recognized it were silenced by the threat of being called "communists" and having their lives destroyed. We call it "McCarthyism" and think it died with him, but it didn't, and now it's so strong we live in fear of it taking formal power next year.

[jbrockwa]

When I initially saw the word “parigüayo” appear in Oscar Wao and learned of its meaning, I could not help but become overpowered by my giddiness! The invocation of an infamously overpowered comic book character in the context of this book was surely no mistake, right? How could Oscar, an infamously nerdy lover-of-comics, possibly come up in the same sentence as a word which roughly translates to “watcher” and by mere coincidence? Here you have a book hinged on the main character’s niche obsession with comic books invoking a name that I myself nerdily associate with the deep-lore of Marvel Comics. 

For the purpose of briefly contextualizing my excitement and/or the relevance of the seemingly arbitrary invocation of the term “watcher,” in the Marvel Comics universe, the Watchers are noted as being one of the oldest species in existence. Their sole purpose for being is to observe and cultivate all knowledge across the known multiverse and they have a strict “isolationist” policy meaning they are prohibited from interfering with the events they compile. In short, they are passive archivists, bound by cosmic “law” to not intervene in the affairs of mortals. This policy was implemented after the Watchers made an attempt, in good faith, to bestow the knowledge of the multiverse onto a race of beings called the Prosilicans. However, the knowledge that they were endowed with led to the creation of nuclear weapons with ended in a catastrophic conflict. The Watchers were subsequently blamed for the giving the Proscilicans knowledge they were not yet prepared to handle, and enacted their stringent policy of no intervention.  Despite this though, the recurring Watcher character name Uatu consistently interferes with the superhero adventures of Hulk and the Fantastic Four on several occasions, aiding even in the destruction of their enemies at some points. At one point, Uatu is put on trial, where it is revealed that the Watcher has broken his non-intervention pact hundreds of times throughout the multiverses history. Here, it is also revealed that the Watchers are bound to their policy of non-intervention by a force known as Fulcrum, to which there are consequences for disobeying. Oddly enough, though, the other Watchers have themselves interfered in the events of other civilizations' in the Marvel universe, most notably in the face of apocalypse or world-ending events. Basically, the contingencies on which they can break their own law are determined by them, in specific instances where they deem their intervention necessary to continue being, well, Watchers. I think this is essentially the idea that in order to watch the universe, there needs to first be a universe to watch. Now, here’s Diaz’s first use of the of the term “parigüayo:” “Sophomore year Oscar found himself weighing in at a whopping 245 (260 when he was depressed, which was often) and it had become clear to everybody, especially his family, that he’d become the neighborhood parigüayo.* Had none of the Higher Powers of your typical Dominican male, couldn’t have pulled a girl if his life depended on it. Couldn’t play sports for shit, or dominoes, was beyond uncoordinated, threw a ball like a girl. Had no knack for music or business or dance, no hustle, no rap, no G. And most damning of all: no looks. He wore his semikink hair in a Puerto Rican afro, rocked enormous Section 8 glasses—his “anti-pussy devices,” Al and Miggs, his only friends, called them—sported an unappealing trace of mustache on his upper lip and possessed a pair of close-set eyes that made him look somewhat retarded. The Eyes of Mingus. (A comparison he made himself one day going through his mother’s record collection; she was the only old-school dominicana he knew who had dated a moreno until Oscar’s father put an end to that particular chapter of the All-African World Party.) You have the same eyes as your abuelo, his Nena Inca had told him on one of his visits to the DR, which should have been some comfort—who doesn’t like resembling an ancestor?—except this particular ancestor had ended his days in prison.” (Diaz, 35-6)

And the definition, again by Diaz: 

“The pejorative parigüayo, Watchers agree, is a corruption of the English neologism “party watcher.” The word came into common usage during the First American Occupation of the DR, which ran from 1916 to 1924. (You didn’t know we were occupied twice in the twentieth century? Don’t worry, when you have kids they won’t know the U.S. occupied Iraq either.) During the First Occupation it was reported that members of the American Occupying Forces would often attend Dominican parties but instead of joining in the fun the Outlanders would simply stand at the edge of dances and watch. Which of course must have seemed like the craziest thing in the world. Who goes to a party to watch? Thereafter, the Marines were parigüayos—a word that in contemporary usage describes anybody who stands outside and watches while other people scoop up the girls. The kid who don’t dance, who ain’t got game, who lets people clown him — he’s the parigüayo. If you looked in the Dictionary of Dominican Things, the entry for parigüayo would include a wood carving of Oscar. It is a name that would haunt him for the rest of his life and that would lead him to another Watcher, the one who lamps on the Blue Side of the Moon.” (Diaz 423)

I related this “on again, off again” relationship to intervention to the idea of United States occupancy of the Dominican Republic, and their track record of neo-imperial occupancy. The United States, an allegedly peaceful, neoliberal utopia, which stands alone in the world in their ongoing quest for peace, themselves alone decide the terms and condition of said peace. “Democracy” and “freedom” are conveniently defined by whatever the goals of the U.S. are, and whatever entity’s goals don’t align with their perfect formula for “peacekeeping,” consider said entity enemy number one of the United States from that point forward. The U.S. cannot risk their grip on the world to be loosened by any means, and that means establishing their concept of “ideal rule” across the globe under the guise of liberating less fortunate nations and peoples. Similarly, the Watchers decide when they must intervene, and refuse to let humans run their course.  It’s interesting to apply this concept to Oscar, who like the United States forces in a foreign land, is an outsider to his environment. Oscar’s presence is also unwelcome, like the United States and intimidating/unsettling, like the Watchers. Surely, the knowledge that Oscar possesses is alien and inconceivable to “mere mortals” Oscar also cultivates the knowledge of unseen worlds, and his niche obsessions are similarly “archived” by his hyper-active selective memory for nerdy memorabilia. Oscar also doesn’t “intervene” in the parties of his youth, or with the girls in his life, he merely watches, and philosophizes about his inability to do so. When Oscar does intervene, though, is in his daydreams, in his imagined apocalyptic scenarios, similar to the Watchers, who only interfere with the affairs of mortals when it risks destroying the world, or the United States, when they fear their way of life is “under threat.” Finally, this is a bit of a stretch, but the idea of Fulcrum, a cosmic force set in motion without your control, that bears consequences for you actions against it, kind of sounds like Fuku. Fuku cursed the West for their exploitation of the Americas, Oscar was cursed to a life of misfortune because his neglect of his childhood love affair, and Fulcrum binds the Watchers to a sort of “curse” if they break it’s rules. 

[lhs3020b]

Some notes on recent polling developments (long, fairly depressing)...

The YouGov MRP figures came out last night. This is notable because in 2017, the multilevel-regression approach was the sole one that spotted the possibility of a hung parliament. We all ridiculed it at the time - I'll confess that I side-eyed it too. And then - well, we all know what happened to Theresa May, don't we? So, the MRP thing deserves to be taken seriously. And unfortunately, this year, it's looking grim for us. Briefly, the MRP is forecasting a Tory majority. They're also predicting that all opposition parties (bar the SNP, who only stand in Scotland) will lose seats. Labour in particular look in the danger-zone for a collapse, and contrary to their bullish predictions, the Liberal Democrats are also forecast to lose seats. (Note that this is with respect to their current strength - technically, the MRP result gives them a gain of 2 seats on where they were on the 9th of June. They currently have 19, due to defections from various other parties.)

I'll admit that I don't want to believe the MRP results, but this has never been a data-denialist blog, and I don't intend to start on that road today.

One caveat is that the reporting on the MRP results has ben remarkably-bad. The actual YouGov page is here: https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/articles-reports/2019/11/27/yougov-mrp-conservatives-359-labour-211-snp-43-ld- Buried a long way down the page, they say this: "Taking into account the margins of error, our model puts the number of Conservative seats at between 328 and 385, meaning that while we can be confident that the Conservatives would currently get a majority, it could range from a modest one to a landslide." As far as I can tell, the "majority of 68" figure is derived by treating 317 as a working majority and assuming that the Tory vote lands right at the upper end of their confidence-interval. This is poor statistical practice for a variety of reasons. It's also a bit questionable in terms of parliamentary arithmetic - the "working majority" thing depends on how many Sinn Fein MPs Northern Ireland elects (they don't take their seats, so count toward neither Government nor Opposition tallies). And we won't necessarily know how many that is until, well, December the 13th.

(Also, a further health-warning is that apparently the model isn't able to fully-represent some local phenomena, such as independent candidates, and the effect of the Brexit Party's partial stand-down is also apparently somewhat-unclear. The last caveat is that the analysis assumes data that has already been collected - that is, if public opinion changes between now and polling day, then obviously existing projections could become obsolete. This will still be a possible source of error even if the MRP sample is statistically-unbiased and the underlying theory/analysis is all sound.)

However, even the best-case scenario for us gives the Tories 328 seats, which is both a working and a (very small) absolute majority.

Obviously, this is not a good situation for us.

While not quite a landslide, nonetheless an inflated Tory majority will be devastating for this country. The stuff they'll do will be awful. Brexit will happen. There'll be a bus crash late next year, when the transition period ends. (No, they will have no plan for this - they won't feel they need one, as they'll be secure in power until 2024.) There'll be a Windrush for resident EU citizens. They'll trash the economy. They'll probably crash the NHS - the only question there is whether they do it through accidental negligence or through deliberate malice (say, an ideologically-driven trade "deal" that gives President Trump everything he wants on a silver platter). Nothing will be done about the country’s escalating housing crisis. They'll double down on all the maddest of the madcap "law-n-order" stuff - expect an explosion in jailable offences, accompanied by lengthy minimum-sentence tariffs and further restrictions on legal aid. They'll also resuscitate their plans to manipulate the parliamentary boundaries, and change electoral laws in their favour. The media? Expect no surprises from them. The newspapers are largely already Conservative Pravdas. The BBC - nervous about its precious Royal Charter - seems to be in the process of declaring itself for the Tories too.

Bluntly, if the Tories get re-elected this year, they'll gerrymander things so you have little chance of getting rid of them in 2024.

Perhaps this is the key thing to understand about Boris Johnson: really, he's less Britain's Trump, and more Britain's Victor Orban. He'll leave just enough vestigial democracy intact to make what he's doing plausibly-deniable, but he'll busily rearrange the furniture to favour himself and his friends. If he gets re-elected this December, you can expect to be seeing his face into the 2030s. The only reason I put the cut-off as early as that is that I expect the coming climate-crisis will wreak havoc with the Tories' internal coalition. (Oh you've built all your luxury millionaire mansions by the seaside? How nice for you, especially now that the sea is literally in your parlour. Umm, whoops.)

What can be done? Well, the first thing is to reiterate some discussions I've seen on Twitter recently. The TL;DR of them is that hope doesn't have to be something you feel - it can be something you do. (And that's just as well, because I'll admit that 2019 has destroyed what traces of social optimism I was clinging to. I'm dreading the bad end that's coming to us next month, but I also fully-expect it.)

So, my advice remains as it has been: on December the 12th, turn up, and vote for whoever you judge most likely to beat the Tory.

Remember, the MRP approach is fallible. "Mortal, finite, temporary" is absolutely in play here; no model is any better than the data that went into it. Or, indeed, the date when it was calculated. And at the end of the day, the only poll that genuinely-matters is the one on December the 12th, and that hasn't actually happened yet. (Though admittedly, given the storm-surge of pre-emptive grief that's flooding Twitter today, you could be forgiven for thinking otherwise.)

As for the horrible mess that are our opposition parties, I'll repeat what I said in 2017: it's OK to vote for a least-worst option. You're not perjuring yourself or committing any moral sin, rather you're trying to be a grown-up. Part of the package of being an adult is making the best of bad situations.

It absolutely does suck - believe me, this is one of the most soul-destroying election campaigns I've ever seen. Every single party has clown-show'd itself. All of them have done things that are ridiculous, inept or otherwise ghastly. (Well, maybe not the Greens - I haven't heard of any specific scandals surrounding them - but their cardinal sin is that they have no plausible prospect of winning the election.) But even then, the barrel we're going to have to stare down is going and voting for them anyway.

(As a related case-in-point, one factor that seems to have helped the Tories win their unexpected 2015 majority was that a contingent of left-wing voters simply stayed at home on the day. While it's hard to find concrete statistics on, nonetheless anecdotally, this absolutely was a thing. A lot of people were demotivated by Labour's confused and incoherent campaign, left cold by all the bothering about fiscal rules, and alienated by things like the mug with "controls on immigration" on it. All of those are 100% valid criticisms. Except, except, except ... it helped an even worse party back into office. The theory of "if the choices are bad, sit it out" has been tested to destruction. It turns out that looking the other way is also a choice, and not necessarily the best one.)

I would add that there are also real questions to be asked about the utter vacuum of political strategy of people nominally on the anti-Tory side - it seems the Opposition spent the summer fixated on the minutiae of House procedures, while never stopping to ask why they were on this battlefield to begin with. Meanwhile the Tories largely-ignored Commons process, and instead sent a political appeal straight to Leave voters. It lost them a lot of individual legislative battles (and I'm not minimising their defeats - they were important!), but it put them in a good strategic place to win an election. And in the long run, it turns out that was what mattered.

It's hard not to feel bitter while thinking about the events of spring and summer. Perhaps if Jo Swinson had been less blinkered about Jeremy Corbyn, perhaps if Labour could have had the minimum sense to call a Vote of No Confidence when BoJo was vulnerable, perhaps if the collective Opposition had been able to recognise the huge wave of unharnessed political energy washing through the country during the petition back in March, perhaps if Change UK had managed to be something other than an unfunny joke, maybe if Corbyn had taken the anti-semitism problem seriously in 2018 and had actually done something instead of sitting on his hands and letting it metastasize to the point where it derailed his election campaign ... but, no. That's for some other, better timeline, not the one we live in. We seem to live in the world that resolutely and firmly chooses the wrong fork in every road. I don't know whether our timeline quite qualifies as the Bad Place, but it's certainly a place full of bad choices.

In a weird sort of way, though, this brings us back to the key theme. Whatever you might think of what's happening in this election - and goodness knows I'm as appalled as anyone else - nonetheless, your vote matters. Use it. As we're seeing, this is the ultimate limitation on their power, and the one chance we have of stopping them.

So once more, let me reiterate: turn up. Vote against the Tory. Do it as a hopeful action, even if you don't feel hopeful. If nothing else, do it so that when the bad things happen, at least you can say you tried to stop it. I wish I had something less bleak to offer here, but this is where we are.

[misfitwashere]

May 29, 2023

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

Beginning in 1943, the War Department published a series of pamphlets for U.S. Army personnel in the European theater of World War II. Titled Army Talks, the series was designed “to help [the personnel] become better-informed men and women and therefore better soldiers.”

On March 24, 1945, the topic for the week was “FASCISM!” 

“You are away from home, separated from your families, no longer at a civilian job or at school and many of you are risking your very lives,” the pamphlet explained, “because of a thing called fascism.” But, the publication asked, what is fascism? “Fascism is not the easiest thing to identify and analyze,” it said, “nor, once in power, is it easy to destroy. It is important for our future and that of the world that as many of us as possible understand the causes and practices of fascism, in order to combat it.”

Fascism, the U.S. government document explained, “is government by the few and for the few. The objective is seizure and control of the economic, political, social, and cultural life of the state.” “The people run democratic governments, but fascist governments run the people.” 

“The basic principles of democracy stand in the way of their desires; hence—democracy must go! Anyone who is not a member of their inner gang has to do what he’s told. They permit no civil liberties, no equality before the law.” “Fascism treats women as mere breeders. ‘Children, kitchen, and the church,’ was the Nazi slogan for women,” the pamphlet said. 

Fascists “make their own rules and change them when they choose…. They maintain themselves in power by use of force combined with propaganda based on primitive ideas of ‘blood’ and ‘race,’ by skillful manipulation of fear and hate, and by false promise of security. The propaganda glorifies war and insists it is smart and ‘realistic’ to be pitiless and violent.” 

Fascists understood that “the fundamental principle of democracy—faith in the common sense of the common people—was the direct opposite of the fascist principle of rule by the elite few,” it explained, “[s]o they fought democracy…. They played political, religious, social, and economic groups against each other and seized power while these groups struggled.” 

Americans should not be fooled into thinking that fascism could not come to America, the pamphlet warned; after all, “[w]e once laughed Hitler off as a harmless little clown with a funny mustache.” And indeed, the U.S. had experienced “sorry instances of mob sadism, lynchings, vigilantism, terror, and suppression of civil liberties. We have had our hooded gangs, Black Legions, Silver Shirts, and racial and religious bigots. All of them, in the name of Americanism, have used undemocratic methods and doctrines which…can be properly identified as ‘fascist.’”

The War Department thought it was important for Americans to understand the tactics fascists would use to take power in the United States. They would try to gain power “under the guise of ‘super-patriotism’ and ‘super-Americanism.’” And they would use three techniques: 

First, they would pit religious, racial, and economic groups against one another to break down national unity. Part of that effort to divide and conquer would be a “well-planned ‘hate campaign’ against minority races, religions, and other groups.”

Second, they would deny any need for international cooperation, because that would fly in the face of their insistence that their supporters were better than everyone else. “In place of international cooperation, the fascists seek to substitute a perverted sort of ultra-nationalism which tells their people that they are the only people in the world who count. With this goes hatred and suspicion toward the people of all other nations.” 

Third, fascists would insist that “the world has but two choices—either fascism or communism, and they label as ‘communists’ everyone who refuses to support them.”

It is “vitally important” to learn to spot native fascists, the government said, “even though they adopt names and slogans with popular appeal, drape themselves with the American flag, and attempt to carry out their program in the name of the democracy they are trying to destroy.” 

The only way to stop the rise of fascism in the United States, the document said, “is by making our democracy work and by actively cooperating to preserve world peace and security.” In the midst of the insecurity of the modern world, the hatred at the root of fascism “fulfills a triple mission.” By dividing people, it weakens democracy. “By getting men to hate rather than to think,” it prevents them “from seeking the real cause and a democratic solution to the problem.” By falsely promising prosperity, it lures people to embrace its security.

“Fascism thrives on indifference and ignorance,” it warned. Freedom requires “being alert and on guard against the infringement not only of our own freedom but the freedom of every American. If we permit discrimination, prejudice, or hate to rob anyone of his democratic rights, our own freedom and all democracy is threatened.” And if “we want to make certain that fascism does not come to America, we must make certain that it does not thrive anywhere in the world.” 

Seventy-eight years after the publication of “FASCISM!” with its program for recognizing that political system and stopping it from taking over the United States, President Joe Biden today at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, honored those who gave their lives fighting to preserve democracy. “On this day, we come together again to reflect, to remember, but above all, to recommit to the future our fallen heroes fought for, …a future grounded in freedom, democracy, equality, tolerance, opportunity, and…justice.”

“[T]he truest memorial to their lives,” the president said, is to act “every day to ensure that our democracy endures, our Constitution endures, and the soul of our nation and our decency endures.”