Raids without warrants, kids in zip-ties, and officials who say “F** the children”: this is the moral collapse of the American state. It's time for state authorities to start making arrests...
Fascism isn’t coming, it’s here. It is “the enemy from within”. It is the fascist President and his administration. It is virtually the entire facscist Republican Party. It is the six fascist reactionary Supreme Court justices whose disdain for America knows no bounds. It is supported by an amoral corporate “legacy” media and equally amoral wealthy individuals and corporations. Addressing each of these will be equally important going forward. Thom Hartmann is shining a light on all of it, as is Christopher Armitage. They are patriotic must reading.
Which is one of the primary reasons it isn't likely to be released, perhaps not for several more decades. Epstein didn't invite the peasantry to his pedophilies' joy house, ironically located in the Virgin Islands.; many rich and powerful people are on that list, not just Trump..
Actually this is a mechanism to force every House member to vote on the record whegther they support the victims. It is a test.
Not just records. Roughly 1000 total victims could testify.
I'm optomistic that most records are availble. In January 2022, unsealed documents revealed that the settlement amount of the 2009 case, entitled Jane Doe No. 102 vs. Jeffrey Epstein, was $500,000 (equivalent to $733,000 in 2024) and other unspecified "valuable consideration". Rest of those records can be unsealed. Se was a minor when she worked at the spa at Mar a Lago. Was, according to her lawyer, shopped by Epstein to many Johns. One allegedly was Prince Andrew.
The Epstein Victim Compensation Fund paid out more than $121 million to approximately 150 eligible survivors of Jeffrey Epstein's sexual abuse. The fund concluded its claims process in August 2021 after receiving about 225 claims and paying out to most of the 150 eligible applicants, according to the fund's administrator. All of the dicovery should be availble.
But many victims didn't seek compensation because It requires a release.
JPMorgan Chase paid $290 million to settle a class-action lawsuit from Jeffrey Epstein's sexual abuse victims. All those records should be available.
Before Acosta gave E[pstein the deal of the century and gave others a get out of jail free card, AUSA Marie Villafana wrote a complaint that was not filed, with attachments and witness statements that have not been produced. Acosta was investigated, ten years after the fact by DOJ. The summary said the Office of Professional Responsibility had reviewed “hundreds of thousands of records,” including emails, letters, memos and investigative materials, and conducted “more than 60 interviews of witnesses,” from FBI case agents to a former deputy attorney general. All should be available.
There reportedly were computer records and videos taken from Epsten's NY house.
Also some of us have experience reconstructing lost records from secondary sources.
Epstein is an insignifant issue compared to what we have done domestically and abroad but horrible all the same. This are the acts of an empireand a corrupt one at that, not a republic. That the Democrats sat on it too strongly suggests that many of them are on that list as well. But in the end, this isn't about either party, this is about the corruption that arise from power..What we need now is a Marcuss Aurelius, not Caligula.
You have to work with what you actually have. Epstein may be a viable entre.
All that other stuff is just bullshit. Most of the political machinations by candidates is not effective in this scenario, where we may never have a valid election again.
Flash From Meidas: … Trump said he “will have to take a look at” a pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell after the US Supreme Court rejected her appeal earlier today: Q - The supreme court rejected the appeal by Maxwell. Trump: Who are we talking about? Q - Ghislaine Maxwell. Trump: Haven’t heard the name in so long. I’ll take a look at it. I’ll speak to the DOJ. Q - But she’s convicted of sex trafficking. Trump: I’ll have to take a look at it.”
Daniel,thanks again for your comments.You're right on top of the latest developments.Would I like to see the JPM records pulled.get that little prick Jamie Diamond.
That's some article linked to the " were deputized and unleashed" line, Thom. But unfortunately telling us about what is going on, while very important, isn't enough. What is needed is for enough people to be organized to report what is happening as it occurs. Imagine if in Chicago last week twenty people had phoned the local and state police, the sheriff's office, and every media outlet, mainstream or otherwise, reporting that armed masked outlaws were breaking and entering, assaulting and kidnapping people. Imagine people started posting everywhere on what was happening, such as was done with George Floyd. And that a similar response was done every time something like this occurred. No criminal organization could withstand such a constant barrage of negative publicity.
To get to that point local citizens have to be primed, trained and ready to stand up. It's not easy as a lot of minorities are understandably afraid to call attention to themselves or interact with the police. (Probably everyone involved should be a citizen and hopefully have a clean record.) Perhaps working through churches and community organizations would be best. A simple package with easy organizational steps and instructions on what to do could be given out at events by respected leaders. I'm sure there are plenty of groups in cities and at least some rural areas where most members are not minorities who would also stand up. (Gays and retirees might be good connections here. And what is ICE going to do with a bunch of loud elderly people?)
We don't need--should not have, in fact, a single organization. That's too much of a target. But if the mindset to shout out is there, and enough citizens are trained and ready to act then we can quickly and peacefully call out what is going on. In short, it’s, “If you see something, say something.” But for the people, not the government.
This is still risky--a teacher or civil servant, or employee of a corporation, while working on their own time could be fired. And just being there could mean they are swept up. But we know what the alternative is to being united. As the 20th century showed, the veneer of civilization is very thin. If we don't stand up and protect it, then we are back to the law of the jungle.
I wonder how many of these ICE thugs have previous criminal records. Remember when Trump said to the Proud Boys "stand back and stand by"? Then they responded, "standing by, sir." Well he has apparently given them the order to proceed against us. At least the Confederate army showed their faces.
The head of the Proud Boys told us back then that they were forming trump's personal militia when he said they were "regrouping" and that "you've seen nothing yet. And yes, they've all had criminal records that were pardoned....
From a Sunday ABC news article titled: Protester shot in Chicago by border patrol agents who claim they were 'ambushed' by convoy
"We will not allow domestic terrorists to attack our law enforcement. If you lay a hand on law enforcement, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.
"We have specific officers and agents that have bounties that have been put on their heads. It's about $2,000 to kidnap them, $10,000 to kill them," Noem said.".
"Ambush", "domestic terrorists" and "bounties"---they really do live in an alternate reality. Thanks goes to the Broadview Public Safety facility that refused to let Noem and her cosplay entourage in to use the restroom.
It's a sh*tshow. It's illegal. Let's make them pay for their crimes and reimburse the victims. See you in the streets.
PS-The shooting victim was treated and released.....this time.
Here in Baghdad By the Sea, 1200 missing from Allegator Alcatraz and nobondy gives a shit.
When Cuban communistrs try to defect to the US, MAGA and our local Cuban American politicalns send them back.
In many cases sending people back to their home countries, i.e. Afghanistan, Russia, etc. is a death sentence.
I say again. Miami healthcare CEO Michael “Mike” B. Fernandez wrote the following open letter to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and members of the Republican Cuban-American Miami-Dade congressional delegation: U.S. Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart, Carlos Giménez and Maria Elvira Salazar.
"For decades, I have stood with you in defense of the freedoms we cherish, those we were denied in the country of our birth and found in the grace of this one. I know what it means to flee tyranny.
"Like you, I carry that history in my bones and that pain in my heart. But like a growing number in our community, I have watched with dismay as the very values we once found sanctuary in are now being attacked by a previously unthinkable threat — the sitting president of the United States.
"In the face of all of this, the silence from our own leaders — the sons and daughters of exiles — has become deafening." .
Please send a message to Desmon Yancy the 5th ward alderman where the helicopters and gunmen attacked our black resident citizens - ward05@cityofchicago.org
Thom is bluntly correct on "who" is in danger and "who" must act to deter it: they are one in the same -
"And by “all” I mean you, too. **None of us are safe if all of us aren’t safe**. We have to stand up and speak out now."
This is last call before a new iron curtain crushes ALL. No one will be spared from this killing machine's wheels - not even those who helped to build it. At some point, this apparatus becomes semiautonomous with a singular purpose: drain every individual of their identity, their voice and most importantly - their value.
It won't be enough to be white. It won't be enough to be "Christian". It won't even be enough to swear allegiance to those in power. These are just temporary illusions of security through fealty.
My Question exactly, Mike. Pritzker talks a good game, but so far has been deathly silent, Newsom has filed suit, but otherwise silent. I maintain that the governors could and should have had the National guard stand down, even dissolve it.
NYT: Illinois officials sued Mr. Trump on Monday, a day after the president ordered hundreds of Texas National Guard soldiers to deploy for “federal protection missions” in Chicago and Portland, Ore.
The lawsuit in Illinois followed a stern ruling by a federal judge in Oregon on Sunday blocking Mr. Trump from sending Guard members from any state to Portland.
On Monday, the Trump administration filed an emergency appeal seeking to stay that ruling.
IL judge denied request for a TRO. Plus NYT sayz Trump said he was considering invoking the Insurrection Act to assume emergency powers and send federal troops to Chicago and Portland, Ore., over local objections. Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois called the mobilization “an unconstitutional invasion.”
The judge’s ruling in Illinos allows the Trump-ordered deployment to move ahead for now, came as a military official said 200 troops from the Texas Guard were headed to Illinois.
I'm pretty sure the federal government trumps (as it were) the states. This matter is in the courts; the final arbiter will be the Supreme Court. There can be little doubt how that will turn out.
Actually anyone breaking the law within a jurisdiction can be arrested. The ICE agents (or FBI, CBP, HSI) are breaking the law by accosting people, arresting them, beating them up, separating children from parents.
This applies to anyone breaking the law. And worse these people do not have any badges, ID, faces are masked.
As it is now, anyone can wear a mask and grab anyone off the streets, and everyone just turns a blind eye.
There is something not right with this picture Robert. One can not just drive through a city streets and snatch people up, and expect everyone to assume that you are a federal cop,working within your jurisdiction.
I don't think that Governors and Mayors have it in them to directly challenge these thugs, and the media is likewise cowardly.
Easy to see it all fall apart before New Year’s. ICE could be arrested but my guess is that were anyone to try it they would find themselves face-down on the asphalt with a taser on the back of the neck.
Someday somebody is going to throw a brick or a stone and in 5 minutes Kent State will look like a nice afternoon with the grandkids in Disneyland. I don’t see violence winning this one. Hell, I have little doubt Trump wouldn’t use a MOAB over some random city just to get his point across, whatever that point might be.
The governor and mayors could order the State and city police to arrest anyone wearing a mask and hauling citizens off the street, and do it with a SWAT team rather than individually.
I am no a lawyer, but I am quite sure that what ICE is doing is illegal,especially since they are wearing masks, don't show their identification, other than a flak jacket with the word Police or ICE on it, and anyone can get hold of a jacket, just like anyone with a cellphone can call themself the press
As far as I can tell we are entering post-democratic America. To paraphrase Mao, power comes from the barrel of a gun. Democracy requires consent of the governed to commit to shared principles and laws but fully half of the population constitutes "the enemy within". We are "the enemy" because we hold to the Constitution, or at least in a half-assed way try to. Meanwhile, El Presidente, sitting in his golden mausoleum (he is dead, isn't he?) pretends we are on the verge of outright rebellion and is therefore preparing to use the Insurrection Act to suspend to suspend the Constitution altogether.
I don't know William. I'm not (very) concerned about myself but the thought of what is likely for my children and grandchildren breaks my heart. I'll stop maundering now.
It is as if we are being held hostage by a domestic version of Hamas. Satan Miller and Russell Vought are running the show while a demented trump is being scurried off to the golf course and who has shown that he is unaware of half of what's been going on. You can do only so much against a ruthless armed ICE. We're visiting Portland next week where I'm from and my friends and I will be protesting in front of the ICE office and my husband will be filming the whole time....
That domestic version is now in the UK, Elon Musk’s answer to Tommy Robinson’s organized anti-immigration rally, that violence is coming to Britain, and they must fight or die, went unsanctioned. Starmer, despite denouncing the fringe violence, resisted calls to sanction Musk for the remarks. Why would Starmer and the UK government do that?
Why haven't arrest warrants for these thugs that break down doors, destroy homes, kidnap people, have been issued?
That's the question. They are violating state and municipal law and apparently state and local government are afraid to challenge them. It should be easy because they are violating the 1st, 4th and 10th Amendment
Oh, I understand the meaning of carte blanche just fine. Blanche is the feminine form of white. I was just riffing on the fact that the thugs are mainly men, the masculine form of white being blanc, not blanche. In French, nouns and adjectives are gender-specific so "white card" in English becomes "carte blanche" in French instead of "carte blanc", because carte is feminine, while "white dog" becomes "le chien blanc", chien and blanc both being masculine. Personally, I prefer Le Chien Andalou.
You are exactly right, Professor Hartmann. The invasion of the high rise in Chicago and all the looting and destruction and zip-tying children crossed way over into authoritarianism. We are there right now. No more asking are we there yet. I will absolutely support state officials arresting the illegal perpetrators with never any warrant. Kidnapping, yes they are. Assaulting, yes they are. Violating the Constitution, yes they most certainly are. The regime has long discarded that however. So states please start arresting these monsters.
I sure would like to see our Portland police arresting anyone who breaks the law, ESPECIALLY those people who I think insult the word "police" by having it emblazoned on whatever outfit they wear as they try to bully and intimidate people. I was a reserve police officer for 20 years in my (much) younger days and I think every cop I knew would agree with me. Some I'd might call "cowboys" (and I admit I liked the rare high speed chase), but even they believed in protecting and serving. All of them showed compassion to crime victims.
Today I wrote about OUR city again in "Who are these Trump thugs aiming their sniper rifles at? They are aiming them at us." (Here: https://halbrown.substack.com/p/who-are-these-trump-thugs-aiming ) This is happening a 21 minute drive from where you are and a 16 minute drive from whem I live.
Good point, and one I have been asking Hal, how can someone walk around a city with or without a badge and arrest them and pull them off the streets, shove them into a van.
Apparently our mayors and governors are cowards, and as regards Sheriffs and Peace Officers, I really don't trust them too many are members of the Constitutional Sheriff's and Peace Officers Association and Oath keepers,
I believe that all law enforcement must be held to the highest ethical standards. Apparently many ICE agents think the rules that would apply to any local cop don't apply to them. Some of their behaviors would have them answering to Internal Affairs and possibly charged with serious crimes themselves. As someone who was a psychotherapist expert in police stress and police consultant I believe law enforcement should be a high calling.
Who, what and how do we give the heave ho to this? There is no Disney to subscription cancel like there was for the Jimmy Kimmel debacle or else we'd be already doing it. The "F*** the children" should become the rallying cry, just like "I can't breathe" energized the population to the moral collapse of our country which happened with George Floyd. And it should start, I believe, with every elected Democrat across the whole country having a banner that says this. It should be behind every Congressional/Senate seat everywhere for all to see on c-span and any media coverage of everything everyday. Loud and clear - THIS IS WHAT MAGA STANDS FOR - F*** THE CHILDREN.
I don't understand why no one videoed the despicable crime on their phone and then sent it in to MSM. I am appalled and afraid at the same time, Dt is getting way out of hand and his authoritarian regime is backing him all the way.
That is a good question, Jeannine. Will we make it? When I said that the Dems should have called out the GOP lies for years now, I meant call them out the moment they lie on air, in public forums, or in their published work before it becomes fact in the minds of voters. We don’t need a “truth squad’ running around after the fact; we need a fact check as soon as their lies leave their mouths. That is what I did not hear, nor at the moment, immediate push back using our constitution and law. Of course, like anyone who takes a stand against the lies, you will be labeled troublesome or a Karen - whatever.
I totally agree. When I watch interviews on TV like Meet the press,or any of those shows they only say, That's not correct, and I'm screaming, THEY ARE LYING CALL THEM OUT.
Especially Johnson this weekend saying it's all about Democrats wanting, illegals to have medical insurance. Not true, only legal people can have Medicare &Medicaid. It's all trmp smoke sceen.
Meet the Press is NBC. MSM. Trump's press conferences are always covered and he is virtually never called on his outright lies. Note that people like Jim Acosta, formerly of CNN and who did ask questions, have been banned.
In DC, members call press conferences every day, 24/7. Most of the time Dems' press confernces are not reported -- even on MSNBC. Once in a while the're picked up....
Outfits like Meidas do report, but don't have full time staff at the capitol.
What galls me is that Republicans are virtually never called on their outright lies om MSM.
I just this morning wrote a response to someone about being a couch potato rebel, and I told them what I personally am doing and what I'm prepared to do, despite my age (I'm just a few months shy of 70), to defend my community and my country as needed. I am a former combat soldier with experience in third world dictatorships. so I'm not afraid of the storm troopers. But I'm not stupid enough to go up against them by myself.
Besides that, I don't advocate for violence as the only answer but we may already be past the point of no return. If we don't find a way to get their attention to let them know that we object to this police state type of behavior, these hired thugs will continue to abuse their power to terrorize the citizens of the U.S. And that is the point right now. Terror. If they can cow the general public into accepting this as normal, we're done as a democratic republic, and we'll have turned the corner into a full on fascist dictatorship with a wannabe mafia capo as the leader.
The only way to pause this, is on the ground. Let the ICE storm troopers feel the physical cost of their terrorism of Americans. If a resistance can make them think about what this terrorism is going to cost them in blood and money, it may make them pause and rethink what they're doing. These ICE agents are operating as they are because they're led to believe that they won't be physically hurt by this domestic terrorism. It's time to change that. They have families to go home to just like the rest of us.
Fascism isn’t coming, it’s here. It is “the enemy from within”. It is the fascist President and his administration. It is virtually the entire facscist Republican Party. It is the six fascist reactionary Supreme Court justices whose disdain for America knows no bounds. It is supported by an amoral corporate “legacy” media and equally amoral wealthy individuals and corporations. Addressing each of these will be equally important going forward. Thom Hartmann is shining a light on all of it, as is Christopher Armitage. They are patriotic must reading.
SCOTUS just denied the Ghislaine Maxwelll petiton for cert.
IMHO Epstein could be Trump's achilles heel. Epstein Justice.
https://epsteinjustice.com/
I'm putting all of my eggs in this basket. Epstein's victims will never let this go....
Which is one of the primary reasons it isn't likely to be released, perhaps not for several more decades. Epstein didn't invite the peasantry to his pedophilies' joy house, ironically located in the Virgin Islands.; many rich and powerful people are on that list, not just Trump..
Actually this is a mechanism to force every House member to vote on the record whegther they support the victims. It is a test.
Not just records. Roughly 1000 total victims could testify.
I'm optomistic that most records are availble. In January 2022, unsealed documents revealed that the settlement amount of the 2009 case, entitled Jane Doe No. 102 vs. Jeffrey Epstein, was $500,000 (equivalent to $733,000 in 2024) and other unspecified "valuable consideration". Rest of those records can be unsealed. Se was a minor when she worked at the spa at Mar a Lago. Was, according to her lawyer, shopped by Epstein to many Johns. One allegedly was Prince Andrew.
The Epstein Victim Compensation Fund paid out more than $121 million to approximately 150 eligible survivors of Jeffrey Epstein's sexual abuse. The fund concluded its claims process in August 2021 after receiving about 225 claims and paying out to most of the 150 eligible applicants, according to the fund's administrator. All of the dicovery should be availble.
But many victims didn't seek compensation because It requires a release.
JPMorgan Chase paid $290 million to settle a class-action lawsuit from Jeffrey Epstein's sexual abuse victims. All those records should be available.
Before Acosta gave E[pstein the deal of the century and gave others a get out of jail free card, AUSA Marie Villafana wrote a complaint that was not filed, with attachments and witness statements that have not been produced. Acosta was investigated, ten years after the fact by DOJ. The summary said the Office of Professional Responsibility had reviewed “hundreds of thousands of records,” including emails, letters, memos and investigative materials, and conducted “more than 60 interviews of witnesses,” from FBI case agents to a former deputy attorney general. All should be available.
There reportedly were computer records and videos taken from Epsten's NY house.
Also some of us have experience reconstructing lost records from secondary sources.
Epstein is an insignifant issue compared to what we have done domestically and abroad but horrible all the same. This are the acts of an empireand a corrupt one at that, not a republic. That the Democrats sat on it too strongly suggests that many of them are on that list as well. But in the end, this isn't about either party, this is about the corruption that arise from power..What we need now is a Marcuss Aurelius, not Caligula.
You have to work with what you actually have. Epstein may be a viable entre.
All that other stuff is just bullshit. Most of the political machinations by candidates is not effective in this scenario, where we may never have a valid election again.
Flash From Meidas: … Trump said he “will have to take a look at” a pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell after the US Supreme Court rejected her appeal earlier today: Q - The supreme court rejected the appeal by Maxwell. Trump: Who are we talking about? Q - Ghislaine Maxwell. Trump: Haven’t heard the name in so long. I’ll take a look at it. I’ll speak to the DOJ. Q - But she’s convicted of sex trafficking. Trump: I’ll have to take a look at it.”
Daniel,thanks again for your comments.You're right on top of the latest developments.Would I like to see the JPM records pulled.get that little prick Jamie Diamond.
You are exactly right!
I live in Texas. Our state authorities are part of the Trump regime. My City, Lubbock, is the same, with the added power of mega churches.
Same in Florida. My county is 50% hispanic. Dems are a majority but MAGA represents 3 House districts.
If anything, De Santis et al are worse than MAGA. Hispanics here need to learn that they are DEI, regardless of political phiosophy.
Same in MO. MAGA and mega churches everywhere.
Please support Fred Wellman for Congress. In N. Carolina, Moe Davis.
The Mega churches supporting " Nazis" doesn't surprise me.
As a public service, I'm republishing Andrew Otozo's Blog. https://mailchi.mp/a1de1584d521/miami-creation-myth-newsletter-19882017?e=2aaf3514f8
That's some article linked to the " were deputized and unleashed" line, Thom. But unfortunately telling us about what is going on, while very important, isn't enough. What is needed is for enough people to be organized to report what is happening as it occurs. Imagine if in Chicago last week twenty people had phoned the local and state police, the sheriff's office, and every media outlet, mainstream or otherwise, reporting that armed masked outlaws were breaking and entering, assaulting and kidnapping people. Imagine people started posting everywhere on what was happening, such as was done with George Floyd. And that a similar response was done every time something like this occurred. No criminal organization could withstand such a constant barrage of negative publicity.
To get to that point local citizens have to be primed, trained and ready to stand up. It's not easy as a lot of minorities are understandably afraid to call attention to themselves or interact with the police. (Probably everyone involved should be a citizen and hopefully have a clean record.) Perhaps working through churches and community organizations would be best. A simple package with easy organizational steps and instructions on what to do could be given out at events by respected leaders. I'm sure there are plenty of groups in cities and at least some rural areas where most members are not minorities who would also stand up. (Gays and retirees might be good connections here. And what is ICE going to do with a bunch of loud elderly people?)
We don't need--should not have, in fact, a single organization. That's too much of a target. But if the mindset to shout out is there, and enough citizens are trained and ready to act then we can quickly and peacefully call out what is going on. In short, it’s, “If you see something, say something.” But for the people, not the government.
This is still risky--a teacher or civil servant, or employee of a corporation, while working on their own time could be fired. And just being there could mean they are swept up. But we know what the alternative is to being united. As the 20th century showed, the veneer of civilization is very thin. If we don't stand up and protect it, then we are back to the law of the jungle.
I wonder how many of these ICE thugs have previous criminal records. Remember when Trump said to the Proud Boys "stand back and stand by"? Then they responded, "standing by, sir." Well he has apparently given them the order to proceed against us. At least the Confederate army showed their faces.
The requirements for ICE have been severely dropped down. You can be 18, have no police or military background and be a candidate. https://www.politico.com/news/2025/08/20/ice-recruitment-military-bonuses-00516709 Teenagers with guns and power, what could possibly go wrong?
And with a big signing bonus in their pocket to buy drinks, drugs, and guns.
No fully formed pre-frontal cortex and judgement required. They will fit right in.
The head of the Proud Boys told us back then that they were forming trump's personal militia when he said they were "regrouping" and that "you've seen nothing yet. And yes, they've all had criminal records that were pardoned....
From a Sunday ABC news article titled: Protester shot in Chicago by border patrol agents who claim they were 'ambushed' by convoy
"We will not allow domestic terrorists to attack our law enforcement. If you lay a hand on law enforcement, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.
"We have specific officers and agents that have bounties that have been put on their heads. It's about $2,000 to kidnap them, $10,000 to kill them," Noem said.".
"Ambush", "domestic terrorists" and "bounties"---they really do live in an alternate reality. Thanks goes to the Broadview Public Safety facility that refused to let Noem and her cosplay entourage in to use the restroom.
It's a sh*tshow. It's illegal. Let's make them pay for their crimes and reimburse the victims. See you in the streets.
PS-The shooting victim was treated and released.....this time.
Here in Baghdad By the Sea, 1200 missing from Allegator Alcatraz and nobondy gives a shit.
When Cuban communistrs try to defect to the US, MAGA and our local Cuban American politicalns send them back.
In many cases sending people back to their home countries, i.e. Afghanistan, Russia, etc. is a death sentence.
I say again. Miami healthcare CEO Michael “Mike” B. Fernandez wrote the following open letter to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and members of the Republican Cuban-American Miami-Dade congressional delegation: U.S. Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart, Carlos Giménez and Maria Elvira Salazar.
"For decades, I have stood with you in defense of the freedoms we cherish, those we were denied in the country of our birth and found in the grace of this one. I know what it means to flee tyranny.
"Like you, I carry that history in my bones and that pain in my heart. But like a growing number in our community, I have watched with dismay as the very values we once found sanctuary in are now being attacked by a previously unthinkable threat — the sitting president of the United States.
"In the face of all of this, the silence from our own leaders — the sons and daughters of exiles — has become deafening." .
Read more at: https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/op-ed/article304271841.html#storylink=cpy
Those bounties are for show, a means to justify ICE's absolutely illegal acts perpetrated on American citizens.
Chicago needs to fight back -
Please send a message to Desmon Yancy the 5th ward alderman where the helicopters and gunmen attacked our black resident citizens - ward05@cityofchicago.org
Desmon needs advice for fight...
Thom is bluntly correct on "who" is in danger and "who" must act to deter it: they are one in the same -
"And by “all” I mean you, too. **None of us are safe if all of us aren’t safe**. We have to stand up and speak out now."
This is last call before a new iron curtain crushes ALL. No one will be spared from this killing machine's wheels - not even those who helped to build it. At some point, this apparatus becomes semiautonomous with a singular purpose: drain every individual of their identity, their voice and most importantly - their value.
It won't be enough to be white. It won't be enough to be "Christian". It won't even be enough to swear allegiance to those in power. These are just temporary illusions of security through fealty.
Speak now or forever lose our peace.
Question: Will J.B. Pritzker seek charges against the perpetrators of the raid last week?
My Question exactly, Mike. Pritzker talks a good game, but so far has been deathly silent, Newsom has filed suit, but otherwise silent. I maintain that the governors could and should have had the National guard stand down, even dissolve it.
Illinois has filed in Court today, also
NYT: Illinois officials sued Mr. Trump on Monday, a day after the president ordered hundreds of Texas National Guard soldiers to deploy for “federal protection missions” in Chicago and Portland, Ore.
The lawsuit in Illinois followed a stern ruling by a federal judge in Oregon on Sunday blocking Mr. Trump from sending Guard members from any state to Portland.
On Monday, the Trump administration filed an emergency appeal seeking to stay that ruling.
Thanks, Daniel
IL judge denied request for a TRO. Plus NYT sayz Trump said he was considering invoking the Insurrection Act to assume emergency powers and send federal troops to Chicago and Portland, Ore., over local objections. Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois called the mobilization “an unconstitutional invasion.”
The judge’s ruling in Illinos allows the Trump-ordered deployment to move ahead for now, came as a military official said 200 troops from the Texas Guard were headed to Illinois.
I'm pretty sure the federal government trumps (as it were) the states. This matter is in the courts; the final arbiter will be the Supreme Court. There can be little doubt how that will turn out.
Actually anyone breaking the law within a jurisdiction can be arrested. The ICE agents (or FBI, CBP, HSI) are breaking the law by accosting people, arresting them, beating them up, separating children from parents.
This applies to anyone breaking the law. And worse these people do not have any badges, ID, faces are masked.
As it is now, anyone can wear a mask and grab anyone off the streets, and everyone just turns a blind eye.
There is something not right with this picture Robert. One can not just drive through a city streets and snatch people up, and expect everyone to assume that you are a federal cop,working within your jurisdiction.
I don't think that Governors and Mayors have it in them to directly challenge these thugs, and the media is likewise cowardly.
Never, ever accept things at face value.
Easy to see it all fall apart before New Year’s. ICE could be arrested but my guess is that were anyone to try it they would find themselves face-down on the asphalt with a taser on the back of the neck.
Someday somebody is going to throw a brick or a stone and in 5 minutes Kent State will look like a nice afternoon with the grandkids in Disneyland. I don’t see violence winning this one. Hell, I have little doubt Trump wouldn’t use a MOAB over some random city just to get his point across, whatever that point might be.
The governor and mayors could order the State and city police to arrest anyone wearing a mask and hauling citizens off the street, and do it with a SWAT team rather than individually.
I am no a lawyer, but I am quite sure that what ICE is doing is illegal,especially since they are wearing masks, don't show their identification, other than a flak jacket with the word Police or ICE on it, and anyone can get hold of a jacket, just like anyone with a cellphone can call themself the press
As far as I can tell we are entering post-democratic America. To paraphrase Mao, power comes from the barrel of a gun. Democracy requires consent of the governed to commit to shared principles and laws but fully half of the population constitutes "the enemy within". We are "the enemy" because we hold to the Constitution, or at least in a half-assed way try to. Meanwhile, El Presidente, sitting in his golden mausoleum (he is dead, isn't he?) pretends we are on the verge of outright rebellion and is therefore preparing to use the Insurrection Act to suspend to suspend the Constitution altogether.
I don't know William. I'm not (very) concerned about myself but the thought of what is likely for my children and grandchildren breaks my heart. I'll stop maundering now.
It is as if we are being held hostage by a domestic version of Hamas. Satan Miller and Russell Vought are running the show while a demented trump is being scurried off to the golf course and who has shown that he is unaware of half of what's been going on. You can do only so much against a ruthless armed ICE. We're visiting Portland next week where I'm from and my friends and I will be protesting in front of the ICE office and my husband will be filming the whole time....
That domestic version is now in the UK, Elon Musk’s answer to Tommy Robinson’s organized anti-immigration rally, that violence is coming to Britain, and they must fight or die, went unsanctioned. Starmer, despite denouncing the fringe violence, resisted calls to sanction Musk for the remarks. Why would Starmer and the UK government do that?
Why haven't arrest warrants for these thugs that break down doors, destroy homes, kidnap people, have been issued?
That's the question. They are violating state and municipal law and apparently state and local government are afraid to challenge them. It should be easy because they are violating the 1st, 4th and 10th Amendment
Apparently they have carte blanche.
Well, almost all of them are blanche. technically blanc).
carte blanche
/kärt bläɴsh′, blänch′, blănch′/
noun
Unrestricted power to act at one's own discretion; unconditional authority.
"gave the contractor carte blanche to modernize the room”
Oh, I understand the meaning of carte blanche just fine. Blanche is the feminine form of white. I was just riffing on the fact that the thugs are mainly men, the masculine form of white being blanc, not blanche. In French, nouns and adjectives are gender-specific so "white card" in English becomes "carte blanche" in French instead of "carte blanc", because carte is feminine, while "white dog" becomes "le chien blanc", chien and blanc both being masculine. Personally, I prefer Le Chien Andalou.
You are exactly right, Professor Hartmann. The invasion of the high rise in Chicago and all the looting and destruction and zip-tying children crossed way over into authoritarianism. We are there right now. No more asking are we there yet. I will absolutely support state officials arresting the illegal perpetrators with never any warrant. Kidnapping, yes they are. Assaulting, yes they are. Violating the Constitution, yes they most certainly are. The regime has long discarded that however. So states please start arresting these monsters.
I sure would like to see our Portland police arresting anyone who breaks the law, ESPECIALLY those people who I think insult the word "police" by having it emblazoned on whatever outfit they wear as they try to bully and intimidate people. I was a reserve police officer for 20 years in my (much) younger days and I think every cop I knew would agree with me. Some I'd might call "cowboys" (and I admit I liked the rare high speed chase), but even they believed in protecting and serving. All of them showed compassion to crime victims.
Today I wrote about OUR city again in "Who are these Trump thugs aiming their sniper rifles at? They are aiming them at us." (Here: https://halbrown.substack.com/p/who-are-these-trump-thugs-aiming ) This is happening a 21 minute drive from where you are and a 16 minute drive from whem I live.
Good point, and one I have been asking Hal, how can someone walk around a city with or without a badge and arrest them and pull them off the streets, shove them into a van.
Apparently our mayors and governors are cowards, and as regards Sheriffs and Peace Officers, I really don't trust them too many are members of the Constitutional Sheriff's and Peace Officers Association and Oath keepers,
I have a badge and police ID. Unfortunately they are no longer valid and this would be out of my jurisdiction even if they were. See: https://bsky.app/profile/halmbrown.bsky.social/post/3m2kbnh6tfs27
Regarding validity, you and the goons have a lot in common.
I believe that all law enforcement must be held to the highest ethical standards. Apparently many ICE agents think the rules that would apply to any local cop don't apply to them. Some of their behaviors would have them answering to Internal Affairs and possibly charged with serious crimes themselves. As someone who was a psychotherapist expert in police stress and police consultant I believe law enforcement should be a high calling.
What can I say. It breaks m heart each time I read one of your devastating articles mirroring our failing democracy
Who, what and how do we give the heave ho to this? There is no Disney to subscription cancel like there was for the Jimmy Kimmel debacle or else we'd be already doing it. The "F*** the children" should become the rallying cry, just like "I can't breathe" energized the population to the moral collapse of our country which happened with George Floyd. And it should start, I believe, with every elected Democrat across the whole country having a banner that says this. It should be behind every Congressional/Senate seat everywhere for all to see on c-span and any media coverage of everything everyday. Loud and clear - THIS IS WHAT MAGA STANDS FOR - F*** THE CHILDREN.
I don't understand why no one videoed the despicable crime on their phone and then sent it in to MSM. I am appalled and afraid at the same time, Dt is getting way out of hand and his authoritarian regime is backing him all the way.
We have 3 more years of this WILL WE MAKE IT?
That is a good question, Jeannine. Will we make it? When I said that the Dems should have called out the GOP lies for years now, I meant call them out the moment they lie on air, in public forums, or in their published work before it becomes fact in the minds of voters. We don’t need a “truth squad’ running around after the fact; we need a fact check as soon as their lies leave their mouths. That is what I did not hear, nor at the moment, immediate push back using our constitution and law. Of course, like anyone who takes a stand against the lies, you will be labeled troublesome or a Karen - whatever.
I totally agree. When I watch interviews on TV like Meet the press,or any of those shows they only say, That's not correct, and I'm screaming, THEY ARE LYING CALL THEM OUT.
Especially Johnson this weekend saying it's all about Democrats wanting, illegals to have medical insurance. Not true, only legal people can have Medicare &Medicaid. It's all trmp smoke sceen.
Meet the Press is NBC. MSM. Trump's press conferences are always covered and he is virtually never called on his outright lies. Note that people like Jim Acosta, formerly of CNN and who did ask questions, have been banned.
In DC, members call press conferences every day, 24/7. Most of the time Dems' press confernces are not reported -- even on MSNBC. Once in a while the're picked up....
Outfits like Meidas do report, but don't have full time staff at the capitol.
What galls me is that Republicans are virtually never called on their outright lies om MSM.
I just this morning wrote a response to someone about being a couch potato rebel, and I told them what I personally am doing and what I'm prepared to do, despite my age (I'm just a few months shy of 70), to defend my community and my country as needed. I am a former combat soldier with experience in third world dictatorships. so I'm not afraid of the storm troopers. But I'm not stupid enough to go up against them by myself.
Besides that, I don't advocate for violence as the only answer but we may already be past the point of no return. If we don't find a way to get their attention to let them know that we object to this police state type of behavior, these hired thugs will continue to abuse their power to terrorize the citizens of the U.S. And that is the point right now. Terror. If they can cow the general public into accepting this as normal, we're done as a democratic republic, and we'll have turned the corner into a full on fascist dictatorship with a wannabe mafia capo as the leader.
The only way to pause this, is on the ground. Let the ICE storm troopers feel the physical cost of their terrorism of Americans. If a resistance can make them think about what this terrorism is going to cost them in blood and money, it may make them pause and rethink what they're doing. These ICE agents are operating as they are because they're led to believe that they won't be physically hurt by this domestic terrorism. It's time to change that. They have families to go home to just like the rest of us.