Preserving Democracy Is The ONLY Issue!

 

The latest polls leading up to Election Day - which is today, for most of you reading this, show that people are starting to lean Republican based on certain issues which they feel Democrats are weak on. Issues like crime, the economy, inflation, immigration, losses in our children's education due to the pandemic, and so forth.

But here's the thing, if our democracy falls, and Republicans are currently VERY blunt about wanting exactly that, all those other issues won't matter worth jack. And there's a good bet the net result for all those issues will be worse.

Take inflation, for instance. If Republicans overturn democracy, what do you think will happen to inflation? That's right, it will go through the roof! Republicans are also campaigning very bluntly on the platform of denying any more funding for the defense of Ukraine. That means prolonging the war Russia has unjustly waged upon it, which increases economic uncertainty for the rest of us. Meaning, that too will vastly increase inflation.

So much for that one.

And the economy? It absolutely floors me that so many people think that Republicans are better at the economy than Democrats are. Republicans have been the direct cause of the last two economic crises, and not ambiguously, either! Reagan was the last beneficiary of a thriving economy, and he inherited that from the last-minute desperation efforts of Jimmy Carter. How do we know? Because it takes at least three years for a president's policies to be felt. Carter invested the time. Reagan dared to take credit in February of 1981. There simply wasn't time for him to have done anything, yet people think his policies saved America from inflation once before. Bullshit!

And just what is the Republican plan for dealing with inflation and the economy this time around? Why, it's the same one it's always been: cut taxes for the ultra-rich, deregulate banks, and say a goddamned prayer!

Why would anyone assume Republicans are better at the economy based on that? Don't we remember the economy absolutely tanking under Sonny Bush? And tanking even worse under Trump?

Is your issue crime? Well, then you'll want to avoid Republicans like the plague. Because their idea of fighting crime is to increase the likelihood that jail will take a small-time criminal and turn him into a big-time criminal. Republicans keep hammering Democrats about no-cash bail, but setting bail high doesn't deter crime. It sends people to jail more frequently, and jail, as we all should know and recognize, is Criminal Training Camp.

Do we really want to increase the bail on criminals so that they can have even more time in Criminal Training Camp and be an even worse criminal after eventual release? And if someone is locked away after a minor offense in this manner, what will happen to his family who must now do without his income and financial support? Won't that father's absence make it far more likely that any children he has also become criminal?

Net result: Three times the criminality out on the street. All just to keep bail high.

I call bullshit.

Oh, and let's wonder aloud why Republicans should care about crime when they themselves are criminals? Ron Johnson, as prime example, had paperwork for alternate electors go through his very office! He's a seditionist and a traitor, which is so much worse than your common crook!

Republicans say they're tough on crime? Ask them why they nominate criminals as candidates!

And again, if our democracy falls, as Republicans openly want it to, crime in the streets will go up, not down!

Is your issue immigration? Then ask yourself: how will we be able to stem the flow of illegal immigrants when our democracy falls and the amount of immigration policing and processing goes from insufficient to none whatsoever?

The only issue which might get better after a fallen democracy would be gun rights, and that only because there would be no central government to enact any background checks at all!

So you see, preserving our democracy is the only issue. All other issues are of secondary import, because they are utterly and completely dependent upon our government surviving.

Oh, and don't forget, our own personal survival is at stake too. 

Because if our democracy falls, it's going to be a bloodbath!

Eric

*

Ron Johnson - Beyond Merely Unacceptable

It's clear by now that Ron Johnson means to lie his ass off in order to win re-election, just as it's equally clear, based on the polls, that plenty of people are buying the lies. So, just to remind everyone what an utterly unacceptable embarrassment this oligarch has been at playing Senator, here's a recap of some of his highlights - er, I mean, lowlights.

Let's begin by recollecting how Johnson pledged that his second term would be his last. He broke that promise to run for a third term. His entire campaign was built on a lie from the onset.

But there's so much more. Remember when he first kicked his campaign off against Russ Feingold in 2010? He had radio ads which said, "They think government creates jobs. I know that private industry creates every job."

Really, Ron? Why don't you ask a soldier? Or ask a teacher? Ask a fireman, or a policeman, or that guy working on the road on your commute to work. Government does create jobs, and often does it well!

And maybe Johnson meant that ultimately all those government jobs come as a result of tax dollars, meaning that private industry creates those jobs too, but that wasn't his argument. His argument was, "government bad, private industry good." Which, as we all know (or should), that's just plain bullshit.

He backs Trump unabashedly. Yet the Jan 6 commission has proven beyond shadow of a doubt that Trump is a guilty little shit.

Trump sucks. Ron backs Trump. Therefore Ron sucks. Simple math.

And let's not forget, papers to select alternate electoral college representatives went right through his office!

His excuse? "Oh, I knew nothing about that." But that excuse is even worse, because it means he has no clue what's going on inside his own office! If he can't run his own office, what makes him think he can be a competent Senator?

Oh, and it's hard for Johnson to be the "anti-crime" candidate when those fake-elector papers prove that HE HIMSELF IS A CRIMINAL!

Remember when he actually dared to go all pro-virus, arguing against "vaccine passports," as if that weren't private industry making its own judgment about how to run its own, damned business without government interference? Remember when Republicans made that their central argument? But arguing against private industry independence wasn't enough for Johnson. Arguing in favor of making people as sick as possible wasn't enough either. He also said that he saw “no reason to be pushing vaccines on people.” He said that vaccine distribution should be limited to those most vulnerable to coronavirus, and added, “if you have a vaccine, quite honestly, what do you care if your neighbor has one or not?"

The vaccine cares, Ron.

Remember this one he said after January 6, 2021?

On WISN Johnson said, "This didn't look like an armed insurrection to me."

Riiiiiiiiight.

“Even though those thousands of people that were marching to the Capitol were trying to pressure people like me to vote the way they wanted me to vote, I knew those were people that love this country, that truly respect law enforcement, would never do anything to break the law, and so I wasn’t concerned.” He said on a right-wing talk radio program, of course. “Had the tables been turned, and President Trump won the election and those were tens of thousands of Black Lives Matter and antifa protesters, I might have been a little concerned.”

You would have been concerned if antifa were protesting? You realize that antifa means "anti-fascist," right? Meaning that you just admitted that you are a fascist?

During the second debate with Mandela Barnes, Johnson hammered on his #1 issue, which is crime. "The first thing you do is support law enforcement, and unfortunately, the lieutenant governor has not done that. He has a record of wanting to defund the police – I know he doesn’t necessarily use that word, but he has a long history of being supported by people leading the effort to defund, he uses code words. Like Cori Bush said, talks about ‘reallocate over bloated police budgets.’ He said it pains him to see fully funded police budgets. That’s his views."

Let's talk about "defunding the police," for a moment, shall we? Republicans went way, way out of their way to defund Milwaukee as a whole, and have been doing so for decades. They've pulled so much cash out of Milwaukee, all the while keeping the city from being able to raise its own revenues, that it's struggled to fund schools, fire departments, and yes - police precincts. So here's Johnson, attacking Democrats for saying "defund the police," while his party actually defunds the police! When the Democrats won back the governorship in 2018, the Republicans shamelessly stripped the governorship of all but the most curory of powers - all to make absolutely sure that Milwaukee would not be able to fund itself, or (and this was the bigger thing for them) that Democrats wouldn't have any say whatsoever in removing the stupid-assed gerrymandering which allows Republicans to keep their thumbs on the scales.

So to recap, Democrats said "defund the police," without actually believing in that literally or literally doing it. While Republicans said "back the blue," while actually defunding the blue.

Holy. Fucking. Shit.

Nobody is paying attention, or they never would have gotten away with that one.

And let's not beat around the bush about "defund the police." It's probably the stupidest slogan ever invented. But we know what it really means (or should by now). It means we should defund police the same way our schools were defunded. It means police should be defunded in the same way public housing was defunded. It means an armed officer isn't needed for every damned traffic stop or domestic violence call.

It means policing should be re-thought, and reformed.

Back to the second debate Johnson had with Barnes. He was asked to say something nice about his opponent. Johnson, ever the "diplomat," said, "I appreciate the fact that Lt. Gov. Barnes had loving parents, school teacher, father that worked third shift. So he had a good upbringing, I guess what puzzles me with that is with that upbringing, why has he turned against America?"

The entire room booed him. Even some in his own party booed. Yeah, he's that asshole.

And all that's just scratching the surface.

The Bulwark rightly calls Johnson "RonAnon."

I'll be as non-partisan as I can possibly be in this blog post. If you happen to be an ultra right-wing conservative (and if you are, why would you be reading this?), then you are way better off with a Democrat than you are with Ron Johnson getting another term.

Hell, you're better off with ANY Democrat than you are with Johnson winning another term.

You are better off with all four members of The Squad getting the senate seat rather than Johnson getting another term.

You are better off with Karl Marx himself getting the senate seat!

In fact, you are better off getting rid of that senat seat altogether rather than giving that senate seat to Ron Johnson again.

Because it's finally time for Republicans to STOP INVESTING IN CANDIDATES WHO ARE COMPLETE MONSTERS!

If your candidate is a Roy Moore, or a Herschel Walker, or a Mehmet Oz, YOU TAKE THE LOSS AND PICK A BETTER CANDIDATE NEXT TIME!

Don't dig in on the shit candidate. Just. Fucking. Don't.

I'm not saying that Ron Johnson is as bad as those other candidates, I'm... Oh, wait, YES, I AM!

He's actually worse.

Mandela Barnes has his problems. I get it. His lying about his educational background weighs heavily with me. Some questions linger about his financial background. But he's better than Johnson could ever be.

Hell, Al Capone would be better at this point.

Eric

*

We're Protesting In The Wrong Place!

 

Part of why I don't write as much on this blog anymore is because The Bulwark is out there. If you're unfamiliar with that news source (and if that's the case, please go fix that) you'll know just how invaluable a resource it is for decoding the right-wing craziness that's out there, keeping us all aware of the MAGA world and what new horrors it's brewing.

Maddeningly, they keep overlooking the absolutely CRITICAL role the Right Wing Media Cult has to play in all of it.

I've written about the Right Wing Media Cult before, and I've warned of the dire consequences that will result if we don't derail it immediately, immediately, immediately. This brief respite from Trump, in which Joe Biden has one, small chance to do something about the RRMC, is on the verge of being squandered. But it's not merely a missed opportunity. It's much, much worse. Because the Right Wing Media Cult is not only NOT being dealt with, it is not only NOT being countered, it is actually advancing!

Case in point, CNN which is owned by Warner Bros./Discovery. It's CEO, David Zazlav, has been pushed by John Malone (a billionaire who recnetly bought a large chunk of Warner Brothers) to make CNN veer off to the right in its news coverage.  Brian Stelter, one of Fox New's harshest critics, was fired as a result, despite high TV ratings, and it's not hard to guess why.

We're supposed to be pushing our news outlets towards the rational center. Instead, the Right-Wing Media Cult has wrapped its slimy tentacles around CNN.

We may have gotten rid of Trump, but we're still losing ground to the lies which are suffocating us.

We're moving backwards. In these critical Biden years, when we're supposed to be advancing and securing democracy from any further Trump threats, we're actually moving backwards!

Where is our resolve? Don't we give a damn?

The damage has been done on the Supreme Court, and that damage will be felt for decades to come, long after any elections in November or afterward. Roe v. Wade has been overturned, and you can pretty much kiss any lawsuits dealing with religious freedom goodbye, as favoritism towards Christianity will be rubber-stamped by this court time and again, all in the name of what they, the nine lackeys -- some of whom lied to get their jobs -- mistakenly think of as "religious freedom."

In response to this unprecedented slep in the face to half our nation's population, protests were seen all over the United States. Here in Milwaukee, the protests happened in Red Arrow Park.

You know, the designated protest area that the authorities want you to protest in.

And here's my point. You're protesting in the wrong place!

How about, instead of Red Arrow Park, or the National Mall, or McCormack Place, or any other "designated" protest area, we protest where the lies are actually being spouted from?

This situation we're in came about when the Right Wing Media Cult spawned Trump, and then spawned the ancillary Trump Cult. How about protesting where that filthy excuse for news media comes from?

Instead of Red Arrow Park, we should be protesting in front of WISN radio, where Mark Belling and Jay Weber are belching lie after lie after lie!

We should have a permanent encampment there, where Belling cannot go to work today without protesters hounding him chanting, "Tell the TRUTH! Tell the TRUTH! Tell the TRUTH!"

By the way, WISN's physical address is 12100 W. Howard Avenue, Greenfield, WI.

Tucker Carlson should be unable to come to work every day without hordes of protesters houding his every step saying "Tell the TRUTH! Tell the TRUTH! Tell the TRUTH!"

Fox News should not be able to sustain traffic surrounding it for all the protesters hounding it day and night, forcing local authorities to move Tucker Carlson to a different, NON-NEWS cable channel. You know, where he belongs.

As does Rachel Maddow, to be fair. Opinionation and infotainment ought be moved off of every news network, not just the conservative ones. I wish her the best of luck on MTV. I know she'll do great.

If we're going to protest anyway, how about we locate the protests where it will actually do some good for a change?

Why protest by their rules when they screwed us over in the first place?

Eric

*

The Racists Made A Critical Mistake

I've been building up a science fiction club in Milwaukee over the last year and a half, and doing so has taken me on some interesting turns lately. I've been making up fliers and distributing them around key areas throughout town, mostly libraries and coffee shops. This has taken me to little nooks of the city which even a lifetime Milwaukee resident like me hasn't seen before. One of them was particularly telling. It taught me a lesson about how the red-lining racists of Milwaukee made a critical mistake - one which left black people a valuable lifeline out of degradation and poverty.

The other day, I explored an alternative route home, looking to avoid the usual traffic jams while simultaneously distributing fliers for the Milwaukee Science Fiction League. I went up Teutonia Ave. and turned west down Villard, meaning to drop off a flier at the Villard Square Public Library. It was a slightly more northerly route than I usually take home, but wasn't too much of a detour. Before I got there, I found an amazing sight. Nestled snugly between 33rd and 38th Streets, was an interesting set of structures with classical brickwork and and inviting-looking facades. There was a bistro-style theater with a sign in front which said "Agape" - clearly transformed into a church since its cinema days - for sale by the city after foreclosure. There was a very ornate brick structure which was very clearly once some sort of bank or city hall. Another looked like it had once been a firehouse, with a bricked-up area where the fire truck garage had once been. There were other buildings that were clearly once centers of business, banking, commerce and industry.  These charming, little buildings were falling apart, but there could be no doubt about it - I was looking at what was once a thriving downtown area!

The downtown of what, I wondered?

Then I found and entered the library, tucked neatly into the southeast corner of 35th and Villard. The parking area was scooped out from the first floor of the building's south side, making it seem almost like a tunnel. The smell of marijuana in the area was quite strong. One of the library doors had been smashed and was covered with a piece of plywood. But inside? Inside was a wonderful, clean, and air-conditioned space occupied with a few kids who were reading themselves towards a better future. The security guard there was nice and friendly, and probably wondered what the hell a bald-ass white boy like me was even doing there. I handed off my flier for the Milwaukee Science Fiction League, and was told by the lady behind the desk that this sounded like a wonderful idea.

That library was a bright, little spot of hope inside an otherwise bad neighborhood.

On my way out, I spotted yet another wonderful, old building with a bulbous tower-spire which was clearly Russo-German in style, a remnant of the "Volga Deutch" of Milwaukee.

'What was this place?' I wondered.

I looked it up after I got home. Turns out, the neighborhood of Old North Milwaukee was once its own, bustling, little metropolis. It began as the town of Schwartzburg (which is eerily prophetic, as that's the German word for "black town" - which is exactly what it became). It grew to become a prominent village, and even a city. It took on the name of "Northern Junction," and later became "North Milwaukee." After it was annexed by Milwaukee in 1929, it was re-designated "Old North Milwaukee." The Milwaukee Road ran right through it. A streetcar line connected it to central Milwaukee. It was an area rich with promise and prosperity. The dilapidated theater I'd found had been built by Fred Maertz, a prominent politician and businessman in the Milwaukee area.

All that glory is gone, now.

On my way back, I drove past 46th and Hampton, not at all far from this historic neighborhood. It was there that my parents owned a home until 1974, and where I spent the first four years of my young life. Later that same decade, the entire section of the city went from predominantly German to predominantly black. It seemingly happened overnight. Between 1974 and 1984, the demographics completely transformed. There is no one "Teutonic" left along Teutonia Avenue anymore.

I don't really blame my parents for being part of the mass exodus of white people out to the suburbs. The same script played itself out in cities all over the Midwestern U.S., and most of those in the "white flight" were not out to screw black people over. They were simply homeowners who saw the property values of their homes plummeting as blacks moved in next door, and did the only reasonable thing they could to protect their family's nest egg. But that sudden decrease in home values was initially brought about by the racism of the first homeowners that left. It was later exacerbated by the racism of the bankers, who reasoned that blacks living next door was somehow a detriment. Bullshit, of course. Having a black neighbor should have made homes increase in value due to neighborhood diversity. But the banks didn't see it that way, so the whites were driven out into the suburbs, racist and non-racist alike, leaving black people the abandoned remains. Due to global economic forces beyond the bankers' control (but which they likely saw coming) the jobs left the area as well. The effect, as we all know, was devastating.

But the racists miscalculated! Milwaukee had then, and still has now, a robust system of libraries scattered throughout exactly the area they red-lined! I witnessed this first-hand. Those libraries are gold-mines, able to lift people out of poverty and into a world of knowledge and education that can propel them into better jobs and better lives. And they also left behind a robust system of parks and greenspace - bulwarks against declining property values and crime. Yes, Milwaukee has its problems, but the racists accidentally left behind a large number of safety valves which people all over the city can take advantage of to build themselves a better future. Those safety valves are the last vestige of a time when Milwaukee was run by German Socialists. 

That's right, this upward mobility for black people was brought to you courtesy of Emil Seidel, Daniel Hoan, and Charles B. Whitnall.

Not even Reagan could destroy it all.

Back in April, when I introduced Emily St. John Mandell at the Literary Luncheon in the Pabst Mansion, I had the great pleasure of sitting with Chevy Johnson, Milwaukee's first elected black mayor. He addressed the audience, pointing out how important the library system was to his upbringing, and how crucial it was that we support it with our donations and tax dollars. He is a living testament to the importance of the libraries as a means whereby children can escape the monster of poverty.

He is proof it works!

The libraries are much more than books. They are much more than a free alternative to the DVD rental store or Redbox. They are living, breathing repositories of the means and knowledge to learn how to code computers, how to write a resume, how to fix a car, how to do... well, anything! For FREE!

So please, oppose any politician who would dare take funds away from our libraries, or worse "privatize" them. Donate liberally as part of your charitable giving when you need your tax write-off (or even if you don't need one). Every dollar you spend on a library means thousands of dollars in positive benefit exactly where it's needed the most!

We need to make that critical mistake by the racist bankers count!

Then, we will see Old North Milwaukee return to being the glorious Schwartzburg it was always meant to be.

Eric

*

Roe v Wade Has Fallen (For Now)

 

Roe v. Wade has fallen. 

To accomplish this, Christians have voted for monsters. For years. And no, that is not mere hyperbole. Roy Moore is a monster. Marjorie Taylor Greene is a monster. Trump is a monster.

To get this done, they've very nearly thrown away our entire democratic republic. They undoubtedly will try to do so again.

All in the misguided effort to bludgeon liberals back to God. Or, so they believe.

Some people actually dare to act surprised by this outcome. Despite people issuing warning bells for years. In spite of Christian Dominionists being brazen about this being their tactic for decades. In spite of a leaked Supreme Court memo stating the Justices' intentions only months ago.

Liberals did not perceive anything like a real threat to their reproductive rights - until it was too late. Somehow, especially during their Berniecrat disappointments, when some of them went all gung-ho for Jill Stein, they just didn't believe this could ever be possible.

What did YOU think "burn it all down" meant?

So what's my take on all this?

For starters, this is the death of Christianity. I predicted so back in 2018, and I predict so again. Christians have gambled everything on this one throw - and won. But they mortgaged their future to do it - and the bills have come due. They are about to pay, and pay dearly, for this mistake.

Nothing pisses off Liberals quite like being too late to prevent a political disaster. Leftists love to swim after the ship long after its sailed, and they've become quite good at such swimming. This time, they will be swimming strong come November, and that's a fact. Were gas prices not so high, I might predict a Democratic sweep of the 2022 midterms. As it is, that will only happen if Russia's war in Ukraine ends very soon, and that's not likely to happen unless the U.S. intervenes.

But there is a silver lining to this dark cloud. As I've predicted in the past, there will come a prohibition moment. The United States will reverse its decision on this, either through legislation, Constitutional Amendment, or both. We've seen this happen before in Ireland. When abortion restrictions fell in that country, there was cheering in the streets!

It will happen here, too. And when it does, Christianity will never, ever rise again.

No, Christianity is not yet dead. But it lies gasping. On the way to its last breath, with the majority of Americans no longer attending church, it has fired off one last shot that will reverberate for many years after they have all gone the way of Greco-Roman Paganism. We will suffer because of this development for a long time. Coat-hanger abortions and back-alley abortions will make a comeback.

Christians may even decide to return to the old bread-and-butter issues that once made it great. Things like feeding the hungry, curing the sick, clothing the naked, helping the poor... You know, the things Jesus would have wanted. Remember those? Christians used to give a shit about all that.

So yes, we lost one. But NEVER give up! This is NOT over!

Eric

*

I Warned You

 Yes, I warned you.

About abortion? Yes. I warned you back in 2018 it was doomed. I also had warnings for you in 2020 when Mitch McConnell did a complete flip-flop from the 2016 argument he used regarding Merrick Garland and decided to fast-track Amy Coney Barrett as the presumptive nominee.

Then, as now, I scolded all you fellow leftists for not fighting then the way you're suddenly willing to now. Somehow, liberals never seem to get outraged at anything until long after the ship has sailed. (Although this ship has not only sailed, it's arrived in port at the other side of the ocean.)

Hey, all you Jill Stein voters. How does your 2016 vote look now?

But while I'm seeing lots of blame for past Republican screw-ups regarding abortion (and complete inaction from Democrats), I'm seeing none of the same association regarding gasoline.

Nobody blames Biden for the upcoming SCOTUS decision regarding abortion. But by the same token, nobody should blame Biden for high gasoline prices and inflation, either. Because the seeds for those were laid by Republican hands and their corporate lobbyists.

Remember the EV-1? It was an electric car made by General Motors from 1996 to 1999. Corporate interests and Republican politicians killed it. Why? To keep us dependent upon gasoline. And being dependent upon gasoline has disastrous economic consequences, because every time there's a gas crisis, it raises the cost of everything.

I warned you about this consequence back in 2011. And again in 2019.

My main point is that we recognize how the current mess with abortion rights happened because of what Republicans did in years past (and what Democrats failed to do). But the exact same situation is also true of gasoline prices. All our continued dependency upon fossil fuels has come at the behest of Republicans bowing to the special interests of Big Oil and the plastics industry. Yes, Putin's invasion of Ukraine is a big factor.

But no amount of supply chain issues would matter if we weren't so dependent upon supply.

Eric

*

 

In my previous blog post, I pointed out how our very democracy is threatened by the constant barrage of fake news. The Right-Wing Media Cult which generates such fake news goes unchecked, free to do or say whatever it takes to stoke anger, fear, and with them, higher network ratings.

So long as the news remains for-profit, it will forever try to sensationalize, electrify, horrify, or in any other way manufacture outrage. Because that's what sells newspapers. That's what drives up ad revenue.

So, given that freedom of speech is an absolute (as well it should be), how do we fight it?

Here's my proposal, and it's so crazy it just might work.

We go to the Republicans and say, "How would you like to stop liberal media bias?"

And of course, they will say, "Hell, yeah! What can I do?"

Then we sell them a bill which essentially says this: Media which labels itself as "news" must only report factual events. False reporting, opinionating, or disguising op ed or advertisement as news is punishable by fine.

Notice how this does not infringe upon free speech. Any "infotainment" outlet, such as Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, or Rachel Maddow, can continue to say whatever they want, as often as they want, so long as they do so on a non-news platform. They must move to an entertainment platform - where they fucking belong.

The territory known as "news" becomes hallowed ground. As it should always be.

This not only drives the opinionating out of the news, it re-establishes the "separation of church and state" that used to exist regarding advertisement and news items. "Native advertising" becomes a thing of the past. (Thank fuck!)

It is analogous to another law, already on the books, regarding food items. If someone sells a food item, and its contents are not what is described on the list of ingredients, that manufacturer is liable. It is illegal to sell "gluten free" when it contains gluten, or "pesticide-free" if it contains pesticides. By the same token, something cannot call itself "news" if it contains opinion instead.

We have the right to know that what goes into our bodies is safe, according to current law. By the same token, we also have a right to know that what goes into our minds is safe as well.

And arguably, our minds are more important.

Of course, if the label says, "contains MSG" and a consumer buys it anyway, that's on them. By the same token, some will continue to consume fake news anyway, just like some people buy the Lucky Charms which is nothing but marshmallows. It might be bad for you, but that's your choice. You just can't pretend it isn't bad for you. You can't pretend you're eating healthy.

You can't pretend you are an informed citizen after watching Tucker Carlson, either.

Will Republicans buy it? They just might. Or, they might smell the trap. But even if they don't trust the proposal, the Right-Wing Media Cult will probably take the bait, especially if Democrats sell it well with a well-executed AstroTurf campaign. (Granted, Dems don't have a good track record of doing this, but with our entire democracy on the line, they'd better!) With the masses of Trumpsters firmly behind it, Republicans will have no choice but to capitulate like the cowards they have proven themselves to be over these last several years.

It will undoubtedly come as a surprise to them when Fox News and OANN get smacked down by this new law far more than CNN and MSNBC do. But... them's the breaks, right?

And I wish Rachel Maddow the best of luck on MTV. I wish Tucker Carlson the best of luck on TBN (or whatever luckless network gets stuck with him). He will undoubtedly retain his following. But not on a news network, which makes all the difference in the world, because Tucker Carlson is not a journalist. He hasn't been for some time.

Besides, if I had to lose Rachel Maddow in order to get rid of Tucker Carlson, I'd take that deal in a heartbeat!

Eric

*

Jan 6th Will Happen Again

 

The revolt on January 6th will happen again.

This is not me being a prophet. This is an empirical observation about what Republicans are doing right now, in broad daylight, to steal the 2024 election.

It's not like I'm making this up. Anyone, right now, can go to a right-wing radio show, television show, or podcast, and hear them talking about doing so right this minute. As we speak, bills are circulating through state legislatures to take the certification power for vote counts away from attorneys general, and place them in the hands of state legislative bodies instead - almost all of which will be controlled by Republicans.

A more blatant and flippant attempt at subverting democracy has not been seen since the Nazis in the 1930's. And while it's usually true that comparing things to Nazism is a virtual guarantee to not be taken seriously, this time it isn't hyperbole or paranoia.

Go see for yourself. It's absolutely shameless.

They feel justified in this because they have been constantly lied to by a media machine that does not give a damn about the truth. So people end up believing that the 2020 election was somehow stolen from them, and believe that they are justified in using desperate tactics.

Check out this video of a man whose fires have been so stoked that he's getting impatient about when he gets to use his precious firearms against liberals.

"How many elections are they going to steal before we kill these people?" Charlie Kirk gets asked at his Turning Point rally in Boise, Idaho.

Kirk, to his credit, denounces him, but that didn't stop a number of people in the audience whom whooping and cheering

Never mind that Republicans have clearly and unambiguously stolen 2 out of the last 5 presidential elections, one of which was taken by Trump, who LOST the popular vote in 2016, yet got named president anyway by an Electoral College system that refused to do the job it was put in place to do, namely prevent demagogues like Trump from getting in.

The system is so out of balance right now, that any Democrat must win 55% of the popular vote or higher, just to win.

And this fucker wants to know when he and his buddies get to use THEIR guns against US?

Where is the sense of urgency regarding the FACT that the Right-Wing Media Cult wants us all DEAD?

January 6th 2021 was a wake-up call. But clearly, the response of the Left and most Democrats is to hit the snooze button and roll over.

This is the part that scares the living shit out of me. The barbarians are at the gate, and all the guards are fast asleep. Playing cards. Abandoning their posts. Not drugged, just fucking apathetic.

Does nobody else see that America is mother-fucking jeopardy?

This is very much like one of those disaster movies where the expert sounds the alarm about the disaster, and nobody ever listens to him. Except that unlike Towering Inferno, or Volcano, or Jurassic Park, where the cautions of the highly-decorated scientists go ignored, there isn't a highly-decorated scientist or expert.

There's just me. And my little blog.

Thus it is that I am forced to sit on the sidelines, watch the experts miss the point over and over, watch those in charge repeatedly fuck up, helpless to stop any of it.

If only people listened to me like they do other contra-qualified gasbags, like Alex Jones - someone whose skill as an "infotainer" is such that he doesn't deserve, nor should ever have, one single follower.

Actually, a few other people see a glimpse of it. Charlie Sykes on The Bulwark has some inkling of it. But he keeps missing the mark. He reports on the threat daily, never EVER addressing the root cause of it all - the non-stop extremist propaganda that passes for "news" these days.

It's like watching someone trying to bail out the sinking ship - one teaspoonful at a time.

Here's a thought: How about we do something about the GIANT, GAPING HOLE IN THE SIDE OF THE GODDAMNED SHIP?! Maybe if we stop the flood of misinformation from flowing in, we can finally bail the ship out so that we can repair it in the nearest harbor.

How do we do that?

Watch this space.

Eric

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