Trump and Vance searching for fraud reminds me of OJ Simpson looking for his wife's "real killer". They must think that by fooling themselves, they are fooling us as well.
You are so right about these things. This administration is pushing the White Christian Nationalist faith version of how to run this country. I don't think a majority of us are going to go along with that. I am a senior female and will not tolerate it in any shape or form. The only way to put a stop to it is by voting blue down the ballot. And I prefer to see the young progressives put into Congress and any other positions available to them. It's time for a changing of the guard.
At this time the only way to stop them, is to overwhelm the voting booths with voters,that aren't MAGA. Because the Republicans have been hard at work for years, especially since 2016 on rigging the election from voter suppression laws, voter caging, armed poll watchers . MAGA election commissions. even owning the voting machines.
If that fails, then all we can hope for is a total collapse of the one thing that keeps Trump and his puppeteers in power, a collapse of the economic system, which means not just the U.S. but the whole dollar dependent world.
If you want to be freed of this theocratic fascist regime, you and the rest of us are going to have to put on a hair shirt. So long as we are warm, well fed, comfy have our cell phones, internet and TV, it will only get worse, till one day we wake up and realize that we are existing a 4th Reich of the Rich.
It is going to hurt, but the only way to escape a fascist regime is for it to collapse from within. There is nothing in the world that can threaten it from without and make it want to change, and if your think it can be changed peacefully from within, another thought is coming.
They are already working on making elections, an irrelevant show exercise, as in Hungary, Russia and Turkey.
The only way to attack this criminal gang and their corporate sponsors is through a prolonged boycott. Whether or not we have the wherewithal to do this is the major question. We need to target specific companies and cut our spending to the bare minimum.
The Montgomery bus boycott took over one year to achieve results. So this would take some serious commitment. Is it in us?
I have thought this for years and wonder if so many decades of media "bling" tsunami advertising has left us wanting so much that "is it in us?" may not be possible.
Yes I thought there was a possibility of the country going through bankruptcy one day. I have hoped however that this would not happen, but it looks like it is happening now slowly but surely before us. Regarding the bomb did we not have the Mother of all bombs that ended WWII? Now we have progressed to the T-bomb (trump bomb, but I am certain you understood what I meant) I do hope we are able to prevent this but we may have to sink to the bottom before we can recover along with trump, vance, hegseth and the rest of them addicted to greed and (false) pride and need a spiritual awakening and a humbling experience.
I’ll be 87 this week and it’s a beautiful spring day in PHILADELPHIA. BUT MY HEART IS BROKEN, as my patriotism flounders and my worry for my grandchildren and great grandchildren grows for the world that I am leaving them. I rally, make phone calls, write letters, am active in my community politics, but am distraught over what this DESPOT, HAS DONE TO MY America. Not only him, but those incompetents that he has surrounded himself with, and he goes on and on. If he locks in more Supreme Court justices, we must add more, the REPUBLICANS IN CONGRESS must deny him the money to continue this war, and the 25th amendment must be considered immediately after the mid terms. The American people must have their way. OUR HIGHEST COURT HAS FAILED US, GIVING IMMUNITY WAS A TRAGEDY.
Hi Barbara we have a lot in common, I'll lbe 87 in a couple of weeks. I also lived in Phillie, N. 18th St and Hill Creek Project, Lawndale. I also have a passel of grandchildren, great grandchildren and 2 (so far) great great grandchildren..
I too am concerned about their future, but it isn't just Trump and what he has done and is doing, but the survivability on this planet as we destroy it's ecosphere.
The way I handle it is realizing, that I was born into a world, not of my choosing, and with no guidebook had to make the best of it, so too will my descendants.
We have to do everything in our power to oust this rogue regime from White House ASAP. It’s unheard in the history of America this could happen to our nation. Unbelievable what’s happening to our country and democracy in front of our eyes! Since current congress and Supreme Court has no spine to stand up to the corrupt regime a great damage is already done to our nation. It’s going to take a long time to build back up our fractured institutions that supplied social and safety networks to people . We must do everything in our power to save America from these robbers who are stealing everything in front of our eyes .
Musk is another welfare queen came from South Africa . He came to USA on student visa and never went to college. He is an illegal citizen here and should be sent back to where he came from . Even Africa is not his country . Wonder where his ancestors came from. If Obama and Biden didn’t give him subsidies to rescue his Tesla during pandemic this guy would be bankrupt by now . This illegal alien must be removed from the soil of America .
IMHO Trump is primarily concered in keeping Epstein from the headlines. I still think it's his fatal flaw. Thom didn't even mention it today but every day there are new revelations that have to piss off Trump.
The entire AG scenario digs him deeper into it. Thom has Rho Khanna to pump for info. If I were an investigative reporter, I'd be seeking info from Marie Villafana and Maureen Comey, former DOJ prosecujtors.
I'd interview Sen. John Cleghorn Leghorn Kennedy R LA every chance I could get.
Meanwhile, although we are at war, we are losing our traditional allies and markets, although he has to know he comes across like a tyrant, he is working on his net worth 24/7. He thinks his biggest enemies are market short sellers. Google: Shorting Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT) has been a highly polarized trade where profitability depends entirely on timing and the ability to absorb extraordinary borrowing costs. While the stock has fallen significantly from its 2024 highs, many short sellers have still lost money due to the stock's extreme volatility and "meme-like" price spikes.
Interactive Brokers
Historical Profitability vs. Losses
Early Success: In April 2024, short sellers saw paper profits of approximately $200 million after the stock plunged from its post-merger high of $66.22 down to the high $30s.
Election-Related Losses: Leading up to the 2024 U.S. election, short sellers were "hammered" by a $420 million loss as the stock rallied nearly 200% in anticipation of a Trump victory.
Long-Term Trend: As of early 2026, the stock has lost roughly 60% of its value over the preceding 12 months, trading in the low-to-mid teens. Traders who held short positions through these long drawdowns without being forced out by spikes could have seen substantial gains on the price drop alone.
The Nasdaq is down 7% in the first quarter, If energy were removed, down more than 10%. Those tech boys everyone thinks are benefitting from Trump are actually just CEOs of companies in the red, scared shitless of their own boards and shareholders. There is fear that AI will kill off huge segments like software companies. In some markets companies play "cutthroat" with each other.
E.G. Musk is facing potential damages of up to $2.6 billion after a jury found he defrauded shareholders regarding his 2022 Twitter acquisition, with damages estimated at roughly $2.1 billion. So, immediately, Musk's SpaceX has "confidentially" filed for an initial public offering (IPO), with reports indicating the company is aiming to raise over $75 billion in what could become the largest IPO in history.
Musk is the personification of the EV industry that Thom discussed yesterday, while Trump tries to kill it.
Epstein is your fall back position, your scapegoat for everything.
How about this. The Iran war was cooked up in October. It takes a lot of time to prepare for an offense, it is not something that is done overnight.
Your expertise is the legal field, mine is in planning epsecially logistics, and preparing for an offensive war requires one hell of a lot of planning and lead dtime.
Dec 28th and 29th Bibi went to Mar a Lago to sit down with his puppet, Trump and celebrate this upcoming offensive called Epic Fury.
In January Trump had a distraction going on he had the USS Gerald Ford stationed in the Caribbean in prepartion for Venezuela, After the capture of Maduro ir pulled anchor and set sail for the Mediterranean to support EpicFury
Meanwhile tIn January 2026, the USS Abraham Lincoln transitioned from the Indo-Pacific to the Middle East, by Jan. 26 to support Operation Epic Fury.
Epic Fury has been in planning since October, and Netanyahu kicked it off to decaptiate the Iranian regime and to neutralize it as a threat while it continued its operations against Hezbollah.
The relationship to Epstein is coincidental, Trump has many balls in the air, not just one and he is the master of chaos and distraction.
I don't think so. The connective tissue between Gaza and the War is Iran.
Iran made itself a problem and the target with their chants of Moq bar Esraeil and it's follow up by arming, advising and financing HAMAS and Hezbollah.
Part of that posture is typical of regimes protecting themselves from their failures by creating a common enemy. Remember what Reagan said about the earth uniting if we were invade by aliens, maybe it wasn't Reagan.
The other reason is religious. According to the Qu'ran and especially the hadiths, especially that of al Bukhari, the day of judgement (end times) won't come until there is a war with the Jews and the Jews are obliterated
Sahah 2925/20236 Book 56, Hadith 139
Shia Islam believes in the mehdi (their saviour) and among them are the Twevlers, believers in the 12th Imam,or hidden Imam, many a cleric aspires to be the hidden Imam, and it all hinges on the death of Israel.
Israel, or rather Netanyahu, the settlers, the Israeli right. has provided the fuel for Iran and it's hostility to the Jews.
Intruth there is no solution to the problem in the Levant, as it is ideological (meaning religions) on both sides, the conflict will be eternal until one side is totally vanguished, Meanwhile the Christian Right, Christian Zionists are having an orgasm waiting for the scenario to play out and they will have their frigging end times and rapture, in which incidentally all of Israel will be destroyed except the 240,000 Jews who convert to Christianity.
Thom nailed it today. Our national reality sucks. Imagine that your worst officer in a reserve National Guard unit is a major with an insubordinate history and bad attitude, whose leadership is so poor that he was fired because his security clearance was revoked. Then imagine this clown is now running the "real" military. No surprise that one of his first acts in office was to, of course, violate security protocols.
Hegseth's view of military service, evidenced by his own remarks and actions, is entirely inconsistent with the military culture that leads a diverse, multi-ethnic, and multi-cultural force that depends on teamwork for success. He thinks leadership is telling people what to do, because most of his career, he had weekend warriors who outranked him telling him what he cannot do. His combat experience, brief as it was, involved fighting the enemy from a desk behind the lines. But as a TV personality, he promoted a Little Rascals he-man woman-hater macho image - important for a 100% cosplay cabinet promoting evangelical white nationalism, misogyny, and homophobia. It is like appointing a gang-banger fresh out of prison to lead a Cub Scout pack.
I fault the Generals and Flag Officers that continue to serve under him, esepcially since he berated,insulted and debased them at Quantico, and yet they stand erect, salute and call him sir.
If they were patriots and upheld their oath to defend and protect the Constitution, they would all have retired.
I suspect that some are sticking around for a higher pension. They have to stay in grade 3 years to retire at that paygrade. I agree that if all the flags refused to work under Hegseth - shutting down the Pentagon, it would have forced a change. However, Trump might have PATCO'd the lot of them. He is that dum.
He may have PATCO'd them but they are all eligible for retirement.
And you made my point about them driven by self interest, if not the pension, then promotion.
But a significant number of them, especially Academy grads, and most def AF Academ y grads have been infected with the Dominionist virus, aka 7 Mountains Mandate, New Apostolic Reformation, People of Prayer, Opus Dei aka Royal Race of the Redeemed https://www.sullivan-county.com/nf0/fundienazis/royal_race.htm
Also known as Christian Reconstruction founded by R J Rushddoony and Ted Cruz father Raphael.
The difference in retirement pay is not trivial between ranks. There is also the ego factor - retiring as a vice admiral vs a full admiral.
On the subject of what I call Old Testament Christians, or what Loflin calls Christian Reconstructionism, I have never encountered any flag officers during my 34 years in service who express moral views remotely like Hegseth. I call 'em OT Christians because their focus is on brutally punishing sinners in contrast to "real" Christians who forgive sinners.
Few "normal" people have any idea how ruthless OT Christians can get. Back in the 70's I was in LA interviewing drug addicts for a National Inst. on Drug Abuse study. Several HS-age male prostitutes volunteered that their parents kicked them out of the house with nothing but the clothes on their back when they discovered their sons were gay. "No sinners in my house!"
One was from TX, the other OK. Prostitution was the only way a 15-year-old could survive back then - especially if doing addictive drugs to cope with the psychological pain of parental rejection. I got the feeling that the parents were more concerned about what neighbors would think rather than that they were rejecting sin. But consistent with Christian Reconstructionism, it helped them rationalize their shameful behavior.
Oklahoma and Texas are full of OT Christians. I never heard "hateful" used in a sentence until Navy assigned me undercover to run a federal lab in OKie City. I saw a father raging at his toddler for whining about wanting a candy bar from the display at the grocery checkout; "Stop bein' so haytful!" Those are also the only two states I have lived in where "Have yew bin sayv'd?" is used as a pickup line in bars. Maybe like ICE, they think they have a quota of sinners to hate as justification fer gitt'n ta heaven.
Having lived in and gone to school in the deep south, and with a Southern Baptist preacher uncle, I can validate what you are saying.
To my point, and per yours those that hung around after being berated by Hegseth and Trump, left their gonads, dignity,principles on the floor of the auditorium, and all for ego and change.
You may have not met any Christian Rconstructionists by they are there, we don't go around proclaiming such stuff, but you can tell by their actions and inactions.
Even Gen Stanley McChrystal who is being lionized on the left, told the troops in Afghanistan, theey were fighting a crusade.
Certainly by the time they hit O-7 ranks they are smart and disciplined enough not to blab their beliefs and ideology, or they wouldn't have been selected in the first place.
My opinion of Gen Randy George and all of the current crop of generals and flag officers is that those who stayed seated in that auditorium in Quantico, after being insulted by Hegseth and Trump, debased themselves. Trump gave them an opportunity to walk out and retire but they so loved the ruffles and flourishes of their rank, their privilege and prestige that they shoved their dignity and self respect where the sun don't shine. That and or they are either Christian Nationalists or Trump humpers, like the current Chief of JCS, Dan Caine.
The moment that Trump reached into the retired rolls, picked a Lt General as Chief of Staff of JCS, promoted him to 4 stars, the alarm bells should have gone off in the media, at least the "liberal" media, but not a word
If the flag officers stayed in service because they thought they could prevent what is happening they didn't pull it off. Hopefully the admirals and generals who have been purged will not stay silent.
i've heard that one before. I don't buy it, because they either get on board the train or they retire. To date Trump and Hegseth have fired some who won't get aboard the train, problem is that they should have walked out of that auditorium in Quantico and submitted their retirement papers.
If the dismissed admirals and generals would sit for group interview or individual interviews I'd be open to understanding their reasons for staying and what their opinions are of the war.
What do you think people whose living is war, think about war. What do you think people who make a living off law, think about law, what do you think people who make a living fixing plumbing, think of plumbing.
If wishes were horses beggars would ride.
If everyone thought like me, there would be world peace,no ideologies, no murder,no rape, no theft, everyone would respect themselves and each other.
If Trump is going to wind down the war, over the next two-three weeks, why does he need another $500 billion for the military? And at the expense (by my count) of 69 programs that, arguably, are vital to our national well-being to differing degrees? It's head spinning! The man is a clear and present danger to our nation. If there was ever a time to raise the alarm and get out and vote, the time is now!
And I ask again--why no articles of impeachment for Hedgseth--this time for "directly" breaching the First Amendment and decimating the military leadership upon which our soldiers are depending to lead them well, and refrain from creating yet more deaths.
Remember when mass media showed pictures of the kids that had being separated from their families at the border, the tinfoil blankets and the cages? Public outcry followed and subsequently the program was curtailed. If mass media showed the results of our missiles and bombs ripping apart innocent Iranian civilians maybe public outcry would force the administration to end their idiocy. Bad optics, horrible wounds, missing appendages. Oh, but the viewing public might be offended, perish forbid.
Trump actually promoted Noem to a pet project, The Shield of the America's, aka Technate of America aka Oceania. But she was an embarrassment with her puffery and nepotistic contract to waste 200 million on her narcissistic self promoting ad, she didn't realize that in the Trump world they only self promotion and narcissism permitted it by Trump
Yet Trump needed her proven and undying fealty and her willingness to follow orders, unflinchingly, so he actually promoted her to head his new project.
There can only be one malignant narcissist in the Trump regime.
Thom, nothing good ever comes from these people who never ever seem to have no bottom at all. The military people so insulting and wrong. These people really know what sacrifice and democracy truly are, in my view. Whiskey Pete, not so much. Insulting Thom, to these peoples career in the military. Thom! No bottom. They all are incompetent to say the most not least. Thom!
I think maybe the Don is getting some bad advice. Now that the generals are free, they can go online and on TV and tell how screwed up we are now. This is not going to go well for the boss.
Excess profit tax on US oil producers to pay for the war.
Trump is Stealing from You
Trump is stealing from the American consumers through higher gas prices. He said America was becoming really rich because we produce a great amount of oil, except it’s Trump’s donors and oil producers who are getting rich from higher oil prices. The American consumers are already paying for this war. It is time for US oil producers to fund this war and end their price windfall. In World War II, the US raised taxes to fund the War and we had excess profit taxes to stop War Profiteers.
Congress needs to do the same thing today: immediately impose excess profit taxes, capture all excess profits on oil production caused by the war. Any increase in the oil price above the price that existed before the US/Israeli attack on Iran should be considered excess profit. A 100% tax on these excess profits should be imposed. These taxes should go directly to fund replacement of US weapons used in the war on Iran, instead of further stressing the American taxpayer.
This will remove any incentive to continue the war against Iran. Also, Congress needs to investigate who purchased oil futures before the attack on Iran began. Congress has to take the lead to eliminate these windfall profits and go after War Profiteers.
Trump and Vance searching for fraud reminds me of OJ Simpson looking for his wife's "real killer". They must think that by fooling themselves, they are fooling us as well.
They aren't fooling themselves, never were. Again we need a decoder book to understand their speak.
Fraud: Means spending on social projects and needs.
Pro life means control of women, misogyny
Family Values means Patria Familia, Subordination of females to males.
States Rights: Means the fascist determine what are rights and who has them.
You are so right about these things. This administration is pushing the White Christian Nationalist faith version of how to run this country. I don't think a majority of us are going to go along with that. I am a senior female and will not tolerate it in any shape or form. The only way to put a stop to it is by voting blue down the ballot. And I prefer to see the young progressives put into Congress and any other positions available to them. It's time for a changing of the guard.
At this time the only way to stop them, is to overwhelm the voting booths with voters,that aren't MAGA. Because the Republicans have been hard at work for years, especially since 2016 on rigging the election from voter suppression laws, voter caging, armed poll watchers . MAGA election commissions. even owning the voting machines.
If that fails, then all we can hope for is a total collapse of the one thing that keeps Trump and his puppeteers in power, a collapse of the economic system, which means not just the U.S. but the whole dollar dependent world.
We must stop this! We are being bombed into poverty. All according to plan…
If you want to be freed of this theocratic fascist regime, you and the rest of us are going to have to put on a hair shirt. So long as we are warm, well fed, comfy have our cell phones, internet and TV, it will only get worse, till one day we wake up and realize that we are existing a 4th Reich of the Rich.
It is going to hurt, but the only way to escape a fascist regime is for it to collapse from within. There is nothing in the world that can threaten it from without and make it want to change, and if your think it can be changed peacefully from within, another thought is coming.
They are already working on making elections, an irrelevant show exercise, as in Hungary, Russia and Turkey.
The only way to attack this criminal gang and their corporate sponsors is through a prolonged boycott. Whether or not we have the wherewithal to do this is the major question. We need to target specific companies and cut our spending to the bare minimum.
The Montgomery bus boycott took over one year to achieve results. So this would take some serious commitment. Is it in us?
I have thought this for years and wonder if so many decades of media "bling" tsunami advertising has left us wanting so much that "is it in us?" may not be possible.
You are correct their Achilles heel is in money, one reason they are shifting to crypto,
You are also correct Americans are too conditioned to their goodies and comfy way of life. and have zero tolerance for pain.
Thanks, Ivan.
Your welcome Benjamin
Yes I thought there was a possibility of the country going through bankruptcy one day. I have hoped however that this would not happen, but it looks like it is happening now slowly but surely before us. Regarding the bomb did we not have the Mother of all bombs that ended WWII? Now we have progressed to the T-bomb (trump bomb, but I am certain you understood what I meant) I do hope we are able to prevent this but we may have to sink to the bottom before we can recover along with trump, vance, hegseth and the rest of them addicted to greed and (false) pride and need a spiritual awakening and a humbling experience.
I’ll be 87 this week and it’s a beautiful spring day in PHILADELPHIA. BUT MY HEART IS BROKEN, as my patriotism flounders and my worry for my grandchildren and great grandchildren grows for the world that I am leaving them. I rally, make phone calls, write letters, am active in my community politics, but am distraught over what this DESPOT, HAS DONE TO MY America. Not only him, but those incompetents that he has surrounded himself with, and he goes on and on. If he locks in more Supreme Court justices, we must add more, the REPUBLICANS IN CONGRESS must deny him the money to continue this war, and the 25th amendment must be considered immediately after the mid terms. The American people must have their way. OUR HIGHEST COURT HAS FAILED US, GIVING IMMUNITY WAS A TRAGEDY.
Hi Barbara we have a lot in common, I'll lbe 87 in a couple of weeks. I also lived in Phillie, N. 18th St and Hill Creek Project, Lawndale. I also have a passel of grandchildren, great grandchildren and 2 (so far) great great grandchildren..
I too am concerned about their future, but it isn't just Trump and what he has done and is doing, but the survivability on this planet as we destroy it's ecosphere.
The way I handle it is realizing, that I was born into a world, not of my choosing, and with no guidebook had to make the best of it, so too will my descendants.
We have to do everything in our power to oust this rogue regime from White House ASAP. It’s unheard in the history of America this could happen to our nation. Unbelievable what’s happening to our country and democracy in front of our eyes! Since current congress and Supreme Court has no spine to stand up to the corrupt regime a great damage is already done to our nation. It’s going to take a long time to build back up our fractured institutions that supplied social and safety networks to people . We must do everything in our power to save America from these robbers who are stealing everything in front of our eyes .
Musk is another welfare queen came from South Africa . He came to USA on student visa and never went to college. He is an illegal citizen here and should be sent back to where he came from . Even Africa is not his country . Wonder where his ancestors came from. If Obama and Biden didn’t give him subsidies to rescue his Tesla during pandemic this guy would be bankrupt by now . This illegal alien must be removed from the soil of America .
IMHO Trump is primarily concered in keeping Epstein from the headlines. I still think it's his fatal flaw. Thom didn't even mention it today but every day there are new revelations that have to piss off Trump.
The entire AG scenario digs him deeper into it. Thom has Rho Khanna to pump for info. If I were an investigative reporter, I'd be seeking info from Marie Villafana and Maureen Comey, former DOJ prosecujtors.
I'd interview Sen. John Cleghorn Leghorn Kennedy R LA every chance I could get.
Meanwhile, although we are at war, we are losing our traditional allies and markets, although he has to know he comes across like a tyrant, he is working on his net worth 24/7. He thinks his biggest enemies are market short sellers. Google: Shorting Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT) has been a highly polarized trade where profitability depends entirely on timing and the ability to absorb extraordinary borrowing costs. While the stock has fallen significantly from its 2024 highs, many short sellers have still lost money due to the stock's extreme volatility and "meme-like" price spikes.
Interactive Brokers
Historical Profitability vs. Losses
Early Success: In April 2024, short sellers saw paper profits of approximately $200 million after the stock plunged from its post-merger high of $66.22 down to the high $30s.
Election-Related Losses: Leading up to the 2024 U.S. election, short sellers were "hammered" by a $420 million loss as the stock rallied nearly 200% in anticipation of a Trump victory.
Long-Term Trend: As of early 2026, the stock has lost roughly 60% of its value over the preceding 12 months, trading in the low-to-mid teens. Traders who held short positions through these long drawdowns without being forced out by spikes could have seen substantial gains on the price drop alone.
The Nasdaq is down 7% in the first quarter, If energy were removed, down more than 10%. Those tech boys everyone thinks are benefitting from Trump are actually just CEOs of companies in the red, scared shitless of their own boards and shareholders. There is fear that AI will kill off huge segments like software companies. In some markets companies play "cutthroat" with each other.
E.G. Musk is facing potential damages of up to $2.6 billion after a jury found he defrauded shareholders regarding his 2022 Twitter acquisition, with damages estimated at roughly $2.1 billion. So, immediately, Musk's SpaceX has "confidentially" filed for an initial public offering (IPO), with reports indicating the company is aiming to raise over $75 billion in what could become the largest IPO in history.
Musk is the personification of the EV industry that Thom discussed yesterday, while Trump tries to kill it.
Epstein is your fall back position, your scapegoat for everything.
How about this. The Iran war was cooked up in October. It takes a lot of time to prepare for an offense, it is not something that is done overnight.
Your expertise is the legal field, mine is in planning epsecially logistics, and preparing for an offensive war requires one hell of a lot of planning and lead dtime.
Dec 28th and 29th Bibi went to Mar a Lago to sit down with his puppet, Trump and celebrate this upcoming offensive called Epic Fury.
In January Trump had a distraction going on he had the USS Gerald Ford stationed in the Caribbean in prepartion for Venezuela, After the capture of Maduro ir pulled anchor and set sail for the Mediterranean to support EpicFury
Meanwhile tIn January 2026, the USS Abraham Lincoln transitioned from the Indo-Pacific to the Middle East, by Jan. 26 to support Operation Epic Fury.
Epic Fury has been in planning since October, and Netanyahu kicked it off to decaptiate the Iranian regime and to neutralize it as a threat while it continued its operations against Hezbollah.
The relationship to Epstein is coincidental, Trump has many balls in the air, not just one and he is the master of chaos and distraction.
I think info for both the Gaza War and the Iran War was all in the boxes at Mar-a-Lago.
Why doesn’t anyone ask what was in the boxes????
I don't think so. The connective tissue between Gaza and the War is Iran.
Iran made itself a problem and the target with their chants of Moq bar Esraeil and it's follow up by arming, advising and financing HAMAS and Hezbollah.
Part of that posture is typical of regimes protecting themselves from their failures by creating a common enemy. Remember what Reagan said about the earth uniting if we were invade by aliens, maybe it wasn't Reagan.
The other reason is religious. According to the Qu'ran and especially the hadiths, especially that of al Bukhari, the day of judgement (end times) won't come until there is a war with the Jews and the Jews are obliterated
Sahah 2925/20236 Book 56, Hadith 139
Shia Islam believes in the mehdi (their saviour) and among them are the Twevlers, believers in the 12th Imam,or hidden Imam, many a cleric aspires to be the hidden Imam, and it all hinges on the death of Israel.
Israel, or rather Netanyahu, the settlers, the Israeli right. has provided the fuel for Iran and it's hostility to the Jews.
Intruth there is no solution to the problem in the Levant, as it is ideological (meaning religions) on both sides, the conflict will be eternal until one side is totally vanguished, Meanwhile the Christian Right, Christian Zionists are having an orgasm waiting for the scenario to play out and they will have their frigging end times and rapture, in which incidentally all of Israel will be destroyed except the 240,000 Jews who convert to Christianity.
Approximately 100 members of Congress disagree ....
In our discussion this moring Thom quoted members of Congress who say that Republican colleagues are ready to jump...after the primaries.
Operative word AFTER.
WTF.
Lame tactic, Irrational as well, The same mentality as a girl climbing into a 55 gal drum or a man digging his own grave.
I can see it now, Republican politicians flipping after an election. as if the MAGA threat will just disappear after the mid terms.
Tell that to the politicians who got murdered in Minnesota, tell that to all the nutso kuku who threaten and carry out violence, who SWAT people.
Thom nailed it today. Our national reality sucks. Imagine that your worst officer in a reserve National Guard unit is a major with an insubordinate history and bad attitude, whose leadership is so poor that he was fired because his security clearance was revoked. Then imagine this clown is now running the "real" military. No surprise that one of his first acts in office was to, of course, violate security protocols.
Hegseth's view of military service, evidenced by his own remarks and actions, is entirely inconsistent with the military culture that leads a diverse, multi-ethnic, and multi-cultural force that depends on teamwork for success. He thinks leadership is telling people what to do, because most of his career, he had weekend warriors who outranked him telling him what he cannot do. His combat experience, brief as it was, involved fighting the enemy from a desk behind the lines. But as a TV personality, he promoted a Little Rascals he-man woman-hater macho image - important for a 100% cosplay cabinet promoting evangelical white nationalism, misogyny, and homophobia. It is like appointing a gang-banger fresh out of prison to lead a Cub Scout pack.
F Troop meets Catch - 22. Dr. Strangelove meets 7 Days in May.
I fault the Generals and Flag Officers that continue to serve under him, esepcially since he berated,insulted and debased them at Quantico, and yet they stand erect, salute and call him sir.
If they were patriots and upheld their oath to defend and protect the Constitution, they would all have retired.
I suspect that some are sticking around for a higher pension. They have to stay in grade 3 years to retire at that paygrade. I agree that if all the flags refused to work under Hegseth - shutting down the Pentagon, it would have forced a change. However, Trump might have PATCO'd the lot of them. He is that dum.
He may have PATCO'd them but they are all eligible for retirement.
And you made my point about them driven by self interest, if not the pension, then promotion.
But a significant number of them, especially Academy grads, and most def AF Academ y grads have been infected with the Dominionist virus, aka 7 Mountains Mandate, New Apostolic Reformation, People of Prayer, Opus Dei aka Royal Race of the Redeemed https://www.sullivan-county.com/nf0/fundienazis/royal_race.htm
Also known as Christian Reconstruction founded by R J Rushddoony and Ted Cruz father Raphael.
The difference in retirement pay is not trivial between ranks. There is also the ego factor - retiring as a vice admiral vs a full admiral.
On the subject of what I call Old Testament Christians, or what Loflin calls Christian Reconstructionism, I have never encountered any flag officers during my 34 years in service who express moral views remotely like Hegseth. I call 'em OT Christians because their focus is on brutally punishing sinners in contrast to "real" Christians who forgive sinners.
Few "normal" people have any idea how ruthless OT Christians can get. Back in the 70's I was in LA interviewing drug addicts for a National Inst. on Drug Abuse study. Several HS-age male prostitutes volunteered that their parents kicked them out of the house with nothing but the clothes on their back when they discovered their sons were gay. "No sinners in my house!"
One was from TX, the other OK. Prostitution was the only way a 15-year-old could survive back then - especially if doing addictive drugs to cope with the psychological pain of parental rejection. I got the feeling that the parents were more concerned about what neighbors would think rather than that they were rejecting sin. But consistent with Christian Reconstructionism, it helped them rationalize their shameful behavior.
Oklahoma and Texas are full of OT Christians. I never heard "hateful" used in a sentence until Navy assigned me undercover to run a federal lab in OKie City. I saw a father raging at his toddler for whining about wanting a candy bar from the display at the grocery checkout; "Stop bein' so haytful!" Those are also the only two states I have lived in where "Have yew bin sayv'd?" is used as a pickup line in bars. Maybe like ICE, they think they have a quota of sinners to hate as justification fer gitt'n ta heaven.
Having lived in and gone to school in the deep south, and with a Southern Baptist preacher uncle, I can validate what you are saying.
To my point, and per yours those that hung around after being berated by Hegseth and Trump, left their gonads, dignity,principles on the floor of the auditorium, and all for ego and change.
You may have not met any Christian Rconstructionists by they are there, we don't go around proclaiming such stuff, but you can tell by their actions and inactions.
Even Gen Stanley McChrystal who is being lionized on the left, told the troops in Afghanistan, theey were fighting a crusade.
Certainly by the time they hit O-7 ranks they are smart and disciplined enough not to blab their beliefs and ideology, or they wouldn't have been selected in the first place.
My opinion of Gen Randy George and all of the current crop of generals and flag officers is that those who stayed seated in that auditorium in Quantico, after being insulted by Hegseth and Trump, debased themselves. Trump gave them an opportunity to walk out and retire but they so loved the ruffles and flourishes of their rank, their privilege and prestige that they shoved their dignity and self respect where the sun don't shine. That and or they are either Christian Nationalists or Trump humpers, like the current Chief of JCS, Dan Caine.
The moment that Trump reached into the retired rolls, picked a Lt General as Chief of Staff of JCS, promoted him to 4 stars, the alarm bells should have gone off in the media, at least the "liberal" media, but not a word
If the flag officers stayed in service because they thought they could prevent what is happening they didn't pull it off. Hopefully the admirals and generals who have been purged will not stay silent.
i've heard that one before. I don't buy it, because they either get on board the train or they retire. To date Trump and Hegseth have fired some who won't get aboard the train, problem is that they should have walked out of that auditorium in Quantico and submitted their retirement papers.
If the dismissed admirals and generals would sit for group interview or individual interviews I'd be open to understanding their reasons for staying and what their opinions are of the war.
What do you think people whose living is war, think about war. What do you think people who make a living off law, think about law, what do you think people who make a living fixing plumbing, think of plumbing.
If wishes were horses beggars would ride.
If everyone thought like me, there would be world peace,no ideologies, no murder,no rape, no theft, everyone would respect themselves and each other.
Deja Nam.
No, this nothing like Vietnam, this Putin invading Ukraine, minus boots on the ground.
Actually this all about the criminal Netanyahu using Trump in castrating Iran
If Trump is going to wind down the war, over the next two-three weeks, why does he need another $500 billion for the military? And at the expense (by my count) of 69 programs that, arguably, are vital to our national well-being to differing degrees? It's head spinning! The man is a clear and present danger to our nation. If there was ever a time to raise the alarm and get out and vote, the time is now!
And I ask again--why no articles of impeachment for Hedgseth--this time for "directly" breaching the First Amendment and decimating the military leadership upon which our soldiers are depending to lead them well, and refrain from creating yet more deaths.
“Oh beautiful for spacious skies, but now those skies are darkening
They’re beating plowshares into swords, for the tired old man that we elected king.
Armchair warriors often fail
And we are poisoned by these fairytales. Lawyers clean up all details…since Daddy had to lie.”
-Don Henley from End of the Innocence
Remember when mass media showed pictures of the kids that had being separated from their families at the border, the tinfoil blankets and the cages? Public outcry followed and subsequently the program was curtailed. If mass media showed the results of our missiles and bombs ripping apart innocent Iranian civilians maybe public outcry would force the administration to end their idiocy. Bad optics, horrible wounds, missing appendages. Oh, but the viewing public might be offended, perish forbid.
Trump dumped Noem to cover up axing the Army Chief of Staff? What was the issue there? When will the military stand up to him?
Trump actually promoted Noem to a pet project, The Shield of the America's, aka Technate of America aka Oceania. But she was an embarrassment with her puffery and nepotistic contract to waste 200 million on her narcissistic self promoting ad, she didn't realize that in the Trump world they only self promotion and narcissism permitted it by Trump
Yet Trump needed her proven and undying fealty and her willingness to follow orders, unflinchingly, so he actually promoted her to head his new project.
There can only be one malignant narcissist in the Trump regime.
You still miss the inside story.....
So you are inside the Trump circle and know the whole story.
Interesting do tell us all about it.
And while at it, how is it that you have been able to get so close to Trump to know the real story.
Thom, nothing good ever comes from these people who never ever seem to have no bottom at all. The military people so insulting and wrong. These people really know what sacrifice and democracy truly are, in my view. Whiskey Pete, not so much. Insulting Thom, to these peoples career in the military. Thom! No bottom. They all are incompetent to say the most not least. Thom!
The Trump thing is a coup. Can there be any doubt?
I think maybe the Don is getting some bad advice. Now that the generals are free, they can go online and on TV and tell how screwed up we are now. This is not going to go well for the boss.
Excess profit tax on US oil producers to pay for the war.
Trump is Stealing from You
Trump is stealing from the American consumers through higher gas prices. He said America was becoming really rich because we produce a great amount of oil, except it’s Trump’s donors and oil producers who are getting rich from higher oil prices. The American consumers are already paying for this war. It is time for US oil producers to fund this war and end their price windfall. In World War II, the US raised taxes to fund the War and we had excess profit taxes to stop War Profiteers.
Congress needs to do the same thing today: immediately impose excess profit taxes, capture all excess profits on oil production caused by the war. Any increase in the oil price above the price that existed before the US/Israeli attack on Iran should be considered excess profit. A 100% tax on these excess profits should be imposed. These taxes should go directly to fund replacement of US weapons used in the war on Iran, instead of further stressing the American taxpayer.
This will remove any incentive to continue the war against Iran. Also, Congress needs to investigate who purchased oil futures before the attack on Iran began. Congress has to take the lead to eliminate these windfall profits and go after War Profiteers.