History, invaluable in understanding how we got here, is easier to digest than current events because we already know the outcome in advance and aren't living through it personally. As horrid as things were — endless war and human suffering — there's a certain comfort and sense of safety in being separated by time, relaxed in a cozy chair by a warm fireplace, reading about historical events, relegating past realities to the intellectual realm of the mind.
Yet, here we are: living through history in the making in a world still torn apart by endless war and human suffering — and now, by imminent climate destruction on a biblical scale.
Focusing on present realities poses a more significant psychological challenge despite our understanding of how we arrived here. Experiencing the daily nightmare of evil surrounding us is quite frightening when we don't yet know our ultimate fate but suspect the future is a dark and foreboding place, threatening our lives and our children.
The sad fact is that we don't always win when we fight. Defeated, we feel naked in a cold, cruel world, casting around desperately for some security when there is none, some solution that will make the bad disappear when it's here to stay, at least for the foreseeable future. No hero will save us; no cavalry will come to the rescue. We are alone and afraid.
Maybe that's how true revolutions begin: When enough people feel the sting of defeat and have nothing left to lose, when they feel the real pain of life firsthand at the gut level, not as a sterile intellectual exercise but as their reality, affecting the deepest part of the mind, fundamentally changing how they think about the world and their place in it.
Then, perhaps, a groundswell of good people will come together despite their differences, act urgently, and change the outward world for the better — the hourglass is running out.
"True revolutions." If you mean 1776, ours wasn't.
I have lived through the civil rights struggles, the sexual revolution, etc. I was conscriped and survived a year in southeast Asia, where a "real" revolution was happening. We were on the losing side.
Noun. hopium (uncountable) (colloquial, derogatory) A clinging to unreasonable or unfounded hopes
Expect Biden, Harris, Democatic operatives, analysts, etc to do nothing but slip silently into the back ground in hopes of escaping the vengeful hand of Trump
When ever a dam breaks, it starts with a small leak, then expands and then gushes.
The small leak was Joe and Mikka Scarborough, kneeling on the hassock at Mar a lago., the capitulation of Yoon of LA Times, Bezo's, Zuckerberg are the stream, the dam is breaking and son it will gush forth and drown out all downstream.
of course there may not be a next generation functioning in an advanced civilization, so how about now? It’s all gadflies with no great heroes so first is to coordinate the best there is. We can start with you, me, and Marianne.
Biden was a victim of his upgringing.. He was elected to the Senate when he was 31 years of age, as a Democrat when the Democratic party was controlled by racists like James Eastland, Byrd and Strom Thurmond
, these were his mentors, they took him under their wing and taught him everything he knows in politics, especially compromise and bipartisanship.
The world has moved on since he served, but those are the lessons learned, and I guess you can't a teach an old dog, new tricks (not a universality, but true enough in Joes case)
He, and other politicans, don't live in the same world that we do, He has had brief exposure on his daily train rides to and from Delaware, but not real world exposure.
I agree. Biden was a surprisingly good President but his background was in compromise not leadership. That tends to be a problem with Presidents coming from Congressional backgrounds although LBJ knew how to get his way once he decided what he wanted. I see some good people coming up like Senator Whitehouse, Jamie Raskin, AOC, Jasmine Crockett and others but they are not in a position of power to effect things as they have to fight the Corporate Democrats in addition to the Republicans.
Bernie Sanders is the FDR of our generation, but the oligarchs stopped him. The younger generations are being led to blame us boomers. We may be the last generation to get an adequate education. When enough people have nothing left to lose, the kleptocrats will run away.
Yes, I so agree with you about Bernie. He was marginalized by the Democratic Party! Perhaps the leader we need now is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez! She has the smarts and the charisma to lead - and she's young! The Democrats are not even unified - Nancy Pelosi despises Alexandria and the Squad. First, the Party needs to unify! Maybe Buttigieg is better able to reach more Conservatives??
AOC has never, that I know of, said anything idiotic but has always called out the stupidity. I don’t know where we will be in 4 years but that’s the problem with all of politics now.
AOC has a hard-fighting personality, one that the Dems need in its leader. But she has been speaking for one slice of America and alienating many. Nancy Pelosi was and is shrewd in assessing political realities and is better at holding a large, disparate group together. She is sharp enough to modify her California liberal approach, if needed, including not campaigning on women's issues. If only she were young.
Agreed on this important point. AOC is fabulous in many directions - but needs to give up millimeters of plank to not alienate voters. This shouldn't be that hard. The alienation cost us the election. We also haven't done a good job of throwing jabs, sharp elbows. Messaging is just so milquetoast. I can't even figure out who's responsible for messaging. I don't need to knock on doors, I don't need to cover off on the phone banks. It's the messaging that needs help.
Kamala didn't offer what we needed. A little bit here and a little bit there weren't going to solve most people's important financial problems. She didn't have an inspiring platform, and the "joy" idea didn't connect with most people.
On the economic front - some crisp juxtaposition would be useful to break through the noise and lies: Column 1 - humpty dumpty, aka the orange turd - big red X; column 2 - Dems - big green check mark: student loans, health insurance, child tax credits..etc. As consumers we're already 'trained' to get it. Little need for spoken word to carry the message
Please 🙏🏻. We need Pelosi to retire as she's holding the Corporate Donors and corrupt Dems in their positions. She is fighting progressive candidates who don't take corporate donations more viciously than she does Republicans. Jessica Cisernos was winning over Henry Cuellar under criminal investigation and who's anti abortion and anti gun control when Pelosi dumped millions in last minute with smearing lying ads that couldn't be refuted in time. That's typical. I could talk about other similar examples.
I thought Pelosi did retire - but she's still influential. Maybe you could explain to me why she dislikes AOC and the Squad so much. What is so radical about them - about wanting to support the working class (which is most of the country)??
A good start would be to follow FDRs lead and name names. Who did Pelosi work with and why to sink AOCs committee leadership bid. Name the names of those that engineered the all male, old timers club DNC leadership team. And indeed, where the hell is Kamala?
IMO: Kamala strikes me as needing more affection than does the typical national politician. She is discouraged about getting less than 50 percent of the popular vote. She is a do-gooder, someone with a strong sense of right and wrong; she was taken out by a bully, feels deflated, and is deciding what to do next.
I wish Pelosi would just go away. Such arrogance. The GOP are much better at circling the wagons, the only time Dems put up a serious fight is when it's against progressives. Where is Harris? is a good question, the answer can be found in why we are in the situation we are in today. Dem's are weak.
Kamala and Tim are silent. Joe has disappeared. Barack and Michelle have evidently lost interest. The Democratic Party is a rudderless ship, its senior officers unwilling to permit, much less help, younger crew repair the damage and set a positive course. This week’s treatment of AOC speaks volumes. The Repugnicans are devoid of integrity, the Democrats are devoid of vision. Lovely.
Thom, we the opposition, need to coalesce into a unified whole. Right now there are a slew or organizations trying to resist; they need to join forces. We need a leader to unify all of us into an organization like MAGA - an anti-MAGA org. How can we fight back if we are so separated from one another? Perhaps Cheney and the Jan. 6 Committee, along with the Democratic Party and Biden and Harris and their Cabinet could unite all of us (including normal Republicans). We need a drastic solution to a drastic situation!
The Democratic Party needs to save our Democracy right now - it needs to do something drastic to save us from MAGA. The only solution I can think of is to unite! Every revolution has occurred when there was a unified resistance. I believe that is what we need to do now - UNIFY! Then - and only then - can we become effective.
Fight like hell - against anti-Democratic, fascist, authoritarian moves by the president and his cultists. We also need to fight against lies and propaganda by the media. We need to be a force, like MAGA, to be reckoned with!!
"Dad was really pissed up seven sheets to the wind last night, kids. He said and did some terrible things - again - but he's getting help. He'll come around. And in the meantime let's all think of some things that make us happy."
That's the Democratic party playing the part of the left hand of the same beast.
Thom - thank you. Today's post is a hammer. Where in the holy hell are all of the posers in warrior's makeup that I stupidly donated nearly all of my savings to? Literally almost all of it. I feel like an idiot for believing, for taking words so seriously that I felt a duty to give time and money I didn't really have. I am a dutiful person by nature, but now I am also a betrayed person - a dupe, a mark, a damn fool. I see no difference between my own wishful thinking and the self-inflicted idiocy of the MAGA congregants.
I gave up NYT, WAPO in protest, but spend more on Substacks + boucoups more. Virtually none are discussing the REAL news...like how we just lost the Cold War.
I also wasted more than I should have in political contributions.
The REAL story is that there were a lot of inconsitencies....like 2020. Trump accused us of fixing the vote...and to any reasonable degree of probability, with Russian help did it Explain how a lesbian won the senate in Wisconsin bigly and Harris lost. How a woman won in MI? How a Chicano in AZ?
If Trump "won," it was only by a whisker.....
Meanwhile, in September, DOJ asserted that Sergey Kiriyenko had created some 30 internet domains to spread Russian disinformation, including on Elon Musk’s X which was formerly known as Twitter. In October, the Wall Street Journal disclosed that Musk had been in contact with Kiriyenko and Vladimir Putin which Dmitry Peskov affirmed.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergey_Kiriyenko
Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin said he had interfered in U.S. elections and would continue doing so in future, We have interfered (in U.S. elections), we are interfering and we will continue to interfere. Carefully, accurately, surgically and in our own way, as we know how to do." https://www.reuters.com/world/us/russias-prigozhin-admits-interfering-us-elections-2022-11-07/
Same here. Meidas Touch, Brian Tyler Cohen and their satellite channels are now my only sources of news and whom I support. Of course HCR and TH as well as others. The ABC capitulation was disgusting but it seems that they realized fighting the suit would cost them more than the 15 mil they "donated" to Trump. Not surprising considering Disney's capitulation to De Santis.
I could confidently say that about many states. IMHO women's rights are a sticky issue for many men nation-wide. Kamala campaigned heavily on women's rights. Shirley Chisholm said, "I've always met more discrimination being a woman than being Black...men are men."
I spent only about $1300 on Democrats this time, but 97% of it to individuals, since I distrust the DNC's judgment. They all lost. I spent only about 13 hours in pounding shoe soles door-to-door, including interviewing people with Trump signs on their lawns. What a losing cause it was for me. But I don't regret it. It was hopeless, but it was the right thing to do. I actually agree with Jon's rant, but I chuckle it off as a slice of life.
Gloria here has broached the subject correctly. Until such time that the DNC does an about face and fully embraces the platforms of Sander's 2016 election bid, throws in what Alexandria Ocasio Cortez brings to the table, aggressively declares a new day in American politics that address all the inequities with a vengeance, and promises to fix what they helped create, I cannot endorse the DNC. Right here and now, ALL IS LOST. If anyone thinks they can essentially go on as before with a tweak here and there, they are every but as delusional as MAGA voters.
We are going to endure (or not) the most forceful course "correction" by this new party that nearly if not ALL Republicans have capitulated to. Everything we have counted on as bedrock over the past 80 some years will be destroyed. Through capricious, callous, gleeful and vengeful actions, laws, and edicts, the USA will become a very different country. I see awareness of that in this forum, but not in the eyes of the Americans I encounter, do business with and interact with in any way, shape or form. Football and Disney go on as if nothing has changed. As it becomes evident to the majority, they will be looking for answers because it will be clear that THIS answer was alarmingly and stupidly wrong.
New leadership COULD come from the Democrats. But they haven't even denounced neo-liberalism yet. Again, until they do, and until they admit that Bernie was precisely right and that they have been unforgivably fraudulent for decades now, the people that voted for Trump will not be fooled again. Our government has been taken over by Plutocratic forces that are not unique to America, but that only America has the chance of fixing. So far, I say, they don't agree with me.
And I did not even mention The Heritage Foundation's contribution to this cluster f**K, with their intolerable theocratic agenda and their "Bannonish" glee with the installation of a Czar. Or the appalling success of Leo Leonard's mission of taking over the Supreme Court to make it little more than a green light for the raping of America as we have known it, along with the 90% of us.
I completely agree with you. Possibly everything needs to crash and burn before something better happens, I don't think for a minute if Harris would have won Dem's would have had a serious course correction, just some more status quo.
Peter. I agreed about Sanders, Until I learned that Bernie Sanders honeymooned in Moscow and that 10 day trip shaped his views about Russia, and it also explains his opposition to aiding Ukraine.
I can’t find a credible source that says Sanders is against aid for Ukraine. He voted against the aid package because of Gaza. Sanders needs to clarify his stance on Ukraine unless he has and I can’t find it.
Got to keep the eye on the ball. It's all about the culture. Hate Trumped logic. 90% of the margin voted against their own economic and physical health.
I supported Bernie until he picked the wrong team re Cuba. So long Florida. Same went for BLM. Down here in the tropics the Dems went for Trump.
The way for a Dem to win is to be inclusive not exclusive.
Problem with Bernie is he is deep down a Marxist. I have antipathy towards Marx and Marxism, for one thing he is not a socialist, he was a proto libertarian,
but I have no truck with any ist or ism, be it secular or sectarian.
Ism's require unfettered devotion and loyalty, and are antithetical to critical thinking and individuality.
From what I have seen, in the eyes of a Marxist, a Marxist government can do no wrong, regardless of how antihuman they are, and in my opinion Putin the beneficiary of the residual Marxism of many on the left In the 1950s and 1960s the Brits called them Tankies (a wikipedia article on Tankie), we have a 2024 version of Tankie, in the form of Tulsi Gabbard, Jill Stein, et al.
While IMO, Trump voters are in fact, deplorable, white Christian nationalists racist, Not all are.
There is significant portion of the black and Hispanic population that are Trump humpers, despite the overt raacism of the GOP, they shunt it aside, ignore it, because there is something that trumps (no pun) race, and that is male dominance. The cry is Male power, not black power.
As regards inclusion. The racist doesn't like being told he or she is racist, the bigot doesn't like being told that he or she is a bigot.
They make pretense that they are not, that is how they survive.
Bill Maher had a TV show Politically Incorrect, very popular because people, don't like having their speech and bigotry throttled. He is still at it, only now he can safely vent on the last remaining minority that has no constituency. the Trans and is enjoined by gays like Andrew Sullivan,who angrily defends his gains but would gladly squash transwomen, probably because much of homophobia is misogynistic in origin. and he is proud of being a gay man, not a wanna be woman. (Iran has formalized this opinion as it forces gay men, if caught, into sexual reassignment surgery, which is a step up from ISIS which throws them off
roofs.)
I well imagine that there is a lot of homosexual activity in Islamic countries, for the same reason as prison "marriages" Imagine a Saudi Porn magazine with men beating off to women in abaya's.
Bigotry and prejudice exists and you can't legislate it away, trying to just exacerbates the problem, and you can''t stifle speech either, you just piss off the people whose speech is stifled.
What you can do is disarm the speech, by making it everyday. In America cunt is a female specific slur, and feminists get outraged, in England men and women are called cunt,it is like calling someone an arse.
Queer was once an epithet hurled at gay men, lesbo or dyke hulred at lesbians.
The LGBT community has owned the word queer,and it is no longer a slur.and dykes proudly call themselves dykes (as opposed to lipstick lesbians). Dykes on Bikes, a feature of every gay pride parade.
Blacks use the word niggah addressing each other and even to whites, We are long past Jim Crow and how the word was used to keep blacks down. Blacks will use the term "my niggah" affectionately. if it were common parlance it would have no demeaning effect.
I see movies these days were women are called "dicks",don't be a dick", Maybe we should stop policing language. All it does is fan the flames and builds resentment.
Berkeley was the mother of the free speech movement, until Bill Maher started calling out Islam for what it is,misogynistic and homophobic,and making jokes about their women in bee keeper suits, then the hypocrisy showed up, and they cancelled Bills performance at Berkeley.
Free speech for me but not for thee.
Now on campus's Jew hatred is de jure and permissible, but "Islamophobia"never
There is no such ting as Islamophobia, just another case of social terrorism.
A phobia is an irrational fea. Disdain and dislike for Islam or any religion is not phobic. Especially the triumphalist, intolerant, misogynistic and homophobic religions.
I've been saying, "We need a hero!" And it seems that you folks think so too.
How does somebody become a hero. Well, much to the consternation of so many of us it seems that they way to become a hero is to gun someone down by shooting him in the back. It shouldn't take a cold blooded murder to draw attention to what corporate wealth & power has done to the country. It's been obvious all along but it takes one, lone gunman who has now become a hero of sorts to many because he brought the problem front & center.
We need someone to bring all the problems about which you write to the front & center. We need heros, we really need heros. But all we get is slithering cowards making their way to Mar a Lago to kiss trump's enornous ass. That is not going to solve any problems! It is going to damn us to servitude of this evil idiot. NO! You can't call trump an evil genius, IDIOT for sure but never a genius!
Let's get to it DEMS, stand up now while you still have legs to do it!
"Idiot" , like "incredible" is overused and usually very imprecise. Calling someone an idiot mainly shows spite. IMO, Trump is not an evil genius so much as an evil wunderkind, someone whose charismatic personality, without intellect, produces political depravity.
Not going to happen Daniel, Biden is going to sink quietly into the background and hope that Der Fuhrer, forgets about him, Kamala as well.
Biden could certify the ERA, but won't. He will take the excuse that the archivist and deptuty aft the Library of Congress, has the authority to estop it by claiming that it has to be certified by congress or SCOTUS, and that is pure bullshit, but is enough of an excuse for Biden.
Biden could have taken pot off schedule 1 at any time, but didn't.
There is so much he could have done and can still do, like pardoning all those convicted for the crime of possessing small quantities of marijuana, I am not talking of drug pushers, but he won't.
Where the hell are they? I have long wondered if they are more interested in continuing to walk the halls of power than to actually exercise some. When the going got tough, these guys got going, right out the door!
It's going to take an "outsider", a "populist" non-politician, much like Trump, who was seen as an anti-politician (his recipe for victory, in my opinion) to topple the coming Fourth Reich. Once they set their little apparatus up and start screwing everyone in sight, we will need a charismatic Navalny in the streets.
Here is the out, when the Trump humpers figure out that they have been screwed by their lord and savior. That's the out.
HCR's offering today, mentions dairy farmers who rely on migrants, believing that Trump's anti immigrant talkis just bluster. It is that way all over the country, those who have financed Trump have made their wealth on the back of immigrants, and don't expect him to follow through with his threats.
Who is buying his NFT's, his sneakers, his bible, his other tacky shit, It isn't the factory worker, the UPS delivery driver, it is the well off middle class farmer, real estate broker, salesman, doctor and lawyer. What Marx called the bourgeoisie
Re migrants, Trump is an expert in visas. Uses them to bring in foreign workers so he doesn't have to hire the locals. IMHO will convert many to temporary status. Will keep many in detention to get a rake off from private companies in the prison business.
Note how he does not seek employer sanctions against the employers, who are probably 99% MAGATs.
The screwees will be people who are on govenrment benefits. Government employees.
I happen to think that Putin will take advantage of the situation and views Trump and the economy as marks. Already manipulating our currency.
I agree with everything you just said, Daniel. I go further the world reserve currency will be the Yuan, BRICS is already shifting that way, and since most of the worlds consumption is made in Asia, orBRICS countries
I have noticed that the Saudis and the UAE are courting China.
While China and Russia are squeezing us out of Africa (an important source of strategic minerals) and the Mideast, they already have Iran under their belt, and are settling differences with India, and that says something.l
The Ds dropped the priceless Ming vase, which is our democracy.
Schumer & Co. effed around, now we are about to find out.
He and Nancy carried a napkin to a gunfight.
And that wait-till-the-very-last-minute, I'm a rock star, the Big Kahuna, crap that Obama pulled?
Asinine.
When you are dealing with self-described GOP political terrorists you are:
- Dealing with political CRAZIES
- Dealing with figurative SUICIDE BOMBERS
- Dealing with a GOP that would Happily BEHEAD the NATION if it HURT the Black Prez
This is an American psychosis that became fertile night-soil* for a fat, socially pathogenic turd.
*Night soil is a historical term for human excreta collected from cesspools, privies, or other containers. This material was often collected at night by workers, hence the name "night soil." It was commonly used as fertilizer in many cultures due to its nutrient content, although it posed significant health risks due to the presence of a big orange pathogen.
It's tough for liberals/progressives to shift into warrior mode, because we are preternatural democrats in temperament. For one, we tend to trust and be trustworthy; the conservatives tend not to be so.
We do need to find those among us with the courage of their convictions, and convictions that address the emergency we are in. I think there are people in the wings, waiting for the old folks to kindly get off the stage. like AOC, Max Frost, Greg Casar, Lucas Kunce, David Hogg, and so many more.
Jeffrey, Democrats are trusting and polite, because we have allowed others to define us, in other words we have been told what we are, and we obey in advance.
Michelle's admoniion, that "when they go low, we go high" is the road to ruin. It results in Democrats bringing, as some one above said, a napkin to a knife fight.
The right has weaponized the language, uses Orwellian speech, and we have no tools to fight it, because we d on't play the game.
The right's slogans fit on bumper stickers, the left's are long winded explanations.
They craft bigoted, authoritarian legislation, and insert the words freedom or liberty into the bill, and Democrats don't call them out for lying and abusing language.
They fight dirty and win, we fight clean and lose, and then pat ourselves on the back for our morality.
When I think of the self imposed morality I also think of the video's and photo's I've seen of people in Eastern Europe obligingly marching into trenches which are to be their mass grave.
Admirable doesn't win battles or wars. Dem's have been stepping into an MMA cage match with gloves and Marquis of Queensboro rules and the Republicans are street fighters.
"The headline at KamalaHarris.com says, “OUR FIGHT CONTINUES,” and the text below it asks for donations “to hold the Trump administration accountable.” Really? How is she going to do that from wherever she and Tim Walz are hiding?"
They are all hiding. You see, Mr. Hartmann, Trump managed to kidnap and extort an entire country and its political process. The Democrats remind me of the steroid-laden body builders on Venice beach here in Southern California. They have huge muscles, but balls the size of raisins.
Trump's bullying worked. And however immoral, criminal, burlesque, detestable and unsavory, it continues to. Period, end of paragraph.
We need a combination of Pete Buttegieg ( who can answer ANY question thrown at him anytime by anyone), Bernie Sanders (rabble rouser) Hakeem Jeffries ( intelligent ), and Tammie Baldwin ( courageous).
Sadly this country is still too misogynistic, racist, and homophobic.
Why are Democrats so bad at messaging??? We live in a Social Media/Podcast/Q Driven world and we need a leader to be active in that world EVERY SINGLE DAY. AOC is the closest we have to be a part of this new world and we need more like her. I'm 71 years old and realize that what worked 20 years ago does not work today. Like Sean Connery in the Untouchables Democrats need to stop bring knives to a gunfight!
What happened to “When we fight, we win!” ???
History, invaluable in understanding how we got here, is easier to digest than current events because we already know the outcome in advance and aren't living through it personally. As horrid as things were — endless war and human suffering — there's a certain comfort and sense of safety in being separated by time, relaxed in a cozy chair by a warm fireplace, reading about historical events, relegating past realities to the intellectual realm of the mind.
Yet, here we are: living through history in the making in a world still torn apart by endless war and human suffering — and now, by imminent climate destruction on a biblical scale.
Focusing on present realities poses a more significant psychological challenge despite our understanding of how we arrived here. Experiencing the daily nightmare of evil surrounding us is quite frightening when we don't yet know our ultimate fate but suspect the future is a dark and foreboding place, threatening our lives and our children.
The sad fact is that we don't always win when we fight. Defeated, we feel naked in a cold, cruel world, casting around desperately for some security when there is none, some solution that will make the bad disappear when it's here to stay, at least for the foreseeable future. No hero will save us; no cavalry will come to the rescue. We are alone and afraid.
Maybe that's how true revolutions begin: When enough people feel the sting of defeat and have nothing left to lose, when they feel the real pain of life firsthand at the gut level, not as a sterile intellectual exercise but as their reality, affecting the deepest part of the mind, fundamentally changing how they think about the world and their place in it.
Then, perhaps, a groundswell of good people will come together despite their differences, act urgently, and change the outward world for the better — the hourglass is running out.
"True revolutions." If you mean 1776, ours wasn't.
I have lived through the civil rights struggles, the sexual revolution, etc. I was conscriped and survived a year in southeast Asia, where a "real" revolution was happening. We were on the losing side.
I don't mean a physically violent revolution but rather a more profound revolution of thought and mind.
(I posted the rest of this reply on Thursday's blog, 12-19-24.)
IMHO our hope is down to one guy --- Biden.
Noun. hopium (uncountable) (colloquial, derogatory) A clinging to unreasonable or unfounded hopes
Expect Biden, Harris, Democatic operatives, analysts, etc to do nothing but slip silently into the back ground in hopes of escaping the vengeful hand of Trump
When ever a dam breaks, it starts with a small leak, then expands and then gushes.
The small leak was Joe and Mikka Scarborough, kneeling on the hassock at Mar a lago., the capitulation of Yoon of LA Times, Bezo's, Zuckerberg are the stream, the dam is breaking and son it will gush forth and drown out all downstream.
As I keep sayin' "never up, never in."
Maybe if everyone contacts Biden.....
I don't understand what you mean by never up never in.
You must not play golf.
of course there may not be a next generation functioning in an advanced civilization, so how about now? It’s all gadflies with no great heroes so first is to coordinate the best there is. We can start with you, me, and Marianne.
Who’s Marianne?
Marianne Williamson?
Biden is part of the problem; he and other centrist Democrats have been afraid to implement progressive principles like FDR did.
Granted, he did about as much as he could get away with, with such a recalcitrant Republican congress, but he should have pushed for much more.
But then, he was no FDR, and he has had a namby-pamby Democratic committee for "support."
Biden was a victim of his upgringing.. He was elected to the Senate when he was 31 years of age, as a Democrat when the Democratic party was controlled by racists like James Eastland, Byrd and Strom Thurmond
, these were his mentors, they took him under their wing and taught him everything he knows in politics, especially compromise and bipartisanship.
The world has moved on since he served, but those are the lessons learned, and I guess you can't a teach an old dog, new tricks (not a universality, but true enough in Joes case)
He, and other politicans, don't live in the same world that we do, He has had brief exposure on his daily train rides to and from Delaware, but not real world exposure.
The Beltway is it's own bubble.
He became a senator in his
I agree. Biden was a surprisingly good President but his background was in compromise not leadership. That tends to be a problem with Presidents coming from Congressional backgrounds although LBJ knew how to get his way once he decided what he wanted. I see some good people coming up like Senator Whitehouse, Jamie Raskin, AOC, Jasmine Crockett and others but they are not in a position of power to effect things as they have to fight the Corporate Democrats in addition to the Republicans.
If you want him to stand up, you get no flies with vinegar.
We are past the hearts and minds phase, Only 22 days to the end of Democracy. Time for the sledge hammer, forget the sugar and vinegar.
Bernie Sanders is the FDR of our generation, but the oligarchs stopped him. The younger generations are being led to blame us boomers. We may be the last generation to get an adequate education. When enough people have nothing left to lose, the kleptocrats will run away.
Yes, I so agree with you about Bernie. He was marginalized by the Democratic Party! Perhaps the leader we need now is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez! She has the smarts and the charisma to lead - and she's young! The Democrats are not even unified - Nancy Pelosi despises Alexandria and the Squad. First, the Party needs to unify! Maybe Buttigieg is better able to reach more Conservatives??
AOC has never, that I know of, said anything idiotic but has always called out the stupidity. I don’t know where we will be in 4 years but that’s the problem with all of politics now.
AOC has a hard-fighting personality, one that the Dems need in its leader. But she has been speaking for one slice of America and alienating many. Nancy Pelosi was and is shrewd in assessing political realities and is better at holding a large, disparate group together. She is sharp enough to modify her California liberal approach, if needed, including not campaigning on women's issues. If only she were young.
Agreed on this important point. AOC is fabulous in many directions - but needs to give up millimeters of plank to not alienate voters. This shouldn't be that hard. The alienation cost us the election. We also haven't done a good job of throwing jabs, sharp elbows. Messaging is just so milquetoast. I can't even figure out who's responsible for messaging. I don't need to knock on doors, I don't need to cover off on the phone banks. It's the messaging that needs help.
Kamala didn't offer what we needed. A little bit here and a little bit there weren't going to solve most people's important financial problems. She didn't have an inspiring platform, and the "joy" idea didn't connect with most people.
On the economic front - some crisp juxtaposition would be useful to break through the noise and lies: Column 1 - humpty dumpty, aka the orange turd - big red X; column 2 - Dems - big green check mark: student loans, health insurance, child tax credits..etc. As consumers we're already 'trained' to get it. Little need for spoken word to carry the message
Please 🙏🏻. We need Pelosi to retire as she's holding the Corporate Donors and corrupt Dems in their positions. She is fighting progressive candidates who don't take corporate donations more viciously than she does Republicans. Jessica Cisernos was winning over Henry Cuellar under criminal investigation and who's anti abortion and anti gun control when Pelosi dumped millions in last minute with smearing lying ads that couldn't be refuted in time. That's typical. I could talk about other similar examples.
I thought Pelosi did retire - but she's still influential. Maybe you could explain to me why she dislikes AOC and the Squad so much. What is so radical about them - about wanting to support the working class (which is most of the country)??
You guys missed Crusader Rabbit.
That's Ocasio-Cortez
Thank you.
A good start would be to follow FDRs lead and name names. Who did Pelosi work with and why to sink AOCs committee leadership bid. Name the names of those that engineered the all male, old timers club DNC leadership team. And indeed, where the hell is Kamala?
IMO: Kamala strikes me as needing more affection than does the typical national politician. She is discouraged about getting less than 50 percent of the popular vote. She is a do-gooder, someone with a strong sense of right and wrong; she was taken out by a bully, feels deflated, and is deciding what to do next.
Pelosi was in it to make money for the family with the info she had from her position in the House.
I wish Pelosi would just go away. Such arrogance. The GOP are much better at circling the wagons, the only time Dems put up a serious fight is when it's against progressives. Where is Harris? is a good question, the answer can be found in why we are in the situation we are in today. Dem's are weak.
Kamala and Tim are silent. Joe has disappeared. Barack and Michelle have evidently lost interest. The Democratic Party is a rudderless ship, its senior officers unwilling to permit, much less help, younger crew repair the damage and set a positive course. This week’s treatment of AOC speaks volumes. The Repugnicans are devoid of integrity, the Democrats are devoid of vision. Lovely.
Thom, we the opposition, need to coalesce into a unified whole. Right now there are a slew or organizations trying to resist; they need to join forces. We need a leader to unify all of us into an organization like MAGA - an anti-MAGA org. How can we fight back if we are so separated from one another? Perhaps Cheney and the Jan. 6 Committee, along with the Democratic Party and Biden and Harris and their Cabinet could unite all of us (including normal Republicans). We need a drastic solution to a drastic situation!
The Democratic party is the party that maintains the status quo.
The Democratic Party needs to save our Democracy right now - it needs to do something drastic to save us from MAGA. The only solution I can think of is to unite! Every revolution has occurred when there was a unified resistance. I believe that is what we need to do now - UNIFY! Then - and only then - can we become effective.
No time to do that, Pelosi has to keep AOC from a leadership position. She'll shake things up and fight. We can't have that!
Unite and do what?
Fight like hell - against anti-Democratic, fascist, authoritarian moves by the president and his cultists. We also need to fight against lies and propaganda by the media. We need to be a force, like MAGA, to be reckoned with!!
The "there, there now" party.
"Dad was really pissed up seven sheets to the wind last night, kids. He said and did some terrible things - again - but he's getting help. He'll come around. And in the meantime let's all think of some things that make us happy."
That's the Democratic party playing the part of the left hand of the same beast.
Circular firing squad?
That would be true Daniel. If the DNC was truly populist and not establishment.
Truly progressive and not White Supremacist conservative
The DNC, in my opinion, is not white supremacist conservative, but elbows with the RNC as to who gets to slop at the donor trough.
I would agree, but not to the extent or degree...not because of greater honesty or integrity, but lack of study and experience.
How are things in Baghdad!
We always have good weather.
Thom - thank you. Today's post is a hammer. Where in the holy hell are all of the posers in warrior's makeup that I stupidly donated nearly all of my savings to? Literally almost all of it. I feel like an idiot for believing, for taking words so seriously that I felt a duty to give time and money I didn't really have. I am a dutiful person by nature, but now I am also a betrayed person - a dupe, a mark, a damn fool. I see no difference between my own wishful thinking and the self-inflicted idiocy of the MAGA congregants.
Amen. Same here! I have not contributed a penny to anyone but Jasmine Crockett since Nov 6.
I gave up NYT, WAPO in protest, but spend more on Substacks + boucoups more. Virtually none are discussing the REAL news...like how we just lost the Cold War.
I also wasted more than I should have in political contributions.
The REAL story is that there were a lot of inconsitencies....like 2020. Trump accused us of fixing the vote...and to any reasonable degree of probability, with Russian help did it Explain how a lesbian won the senate in Wisconsin bigly and Harris lost. How a woman won in MI? How a Chicano in AZ?
If Trump "won," it was only by a whisker.....
Meanwhile, in September, DOJ asserted that Sergey Kiriyenko had created some 30 internet domains to spread Russian disinformation, including on Elon Musk’s X which was formerly known as Twitter. In October, the Wall Street Journal disclosed that Musk had been in contact with Kiriyenko and Vladimir Putin which Dmitry Peskov affirmed.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergey_Kiriyenko
Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin said he had interfered in U.S. elections and would continue doing so in future, We have interfered (in U.S. elections), we are interfering and we will continue to interfere. Carefully, accurately, surgically and in our own way, as we know how to do." https://www.reuters.com/world/us/russias-prigozhin-admits-interfering-us-elections-2022-11-07/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_interference_in_the_2024_United_States_elections
Hasn't Putin bragged about it? Does he expect a quid pro quo?
Why don't "media" address this? If you want more market share THIS IS THE ISSUE.
Hi Daniel,
Same here. Meidas Touch, Brian Tyler Cohen and their satellite channels are now my only sources of news and whom I support. Of course HCR and TH as well as others. The ABC capitulation was disgusting but it seems that they realized fighting the suit would cost them more than the 15 mil they "donated" to Trump. Not surprising considering Disney's capitulation to De Santis.
Thanks for the links, I will def check them out.
Best regards.
It’s also curious how Democrats won the top four positions of the state government in NC and yet trump ends up winning NC?
Don’t forget about the bomb threats in swing states on election night. I know it’s easy to as the media acts like it didn’t happen.
https://smartelections.us/2024-election-update
Greg Palast says 2.7 million provisional ballots in swing states not counted.
But I emphacize the national security aspect. IMHO Jan 6 was an insurrection. 2024 Russia perpetrates it.
Women's rights must be a big cause of Kamala's losing NC.
Why do you say that?
Btw, I was born and raised in NC.
I could confidently say that about many states. IMHO women's rights are a sticky issue for many men nation-wide. Kamala campaigned heavily on women's rights. Shirley Chisholm said, "I've always met more discrimination being a woman than being Black...men are men."
Really liking Jasmine Crockett - she brings it and tells the truth
I spent only about $1300 on Democrats this time, but 97% of it to individuals, since I distrust the DNC's judgment. They all lost. I spent only about 13 hours in pounding shoe soles door-to-door, including interviewing people with Trump signs on their lawns. What a losing cause it was for me. But I don't regret it. It was hopeless, but it was the right thing to do. I actually agree with Jon's rant, but I chuckle it off as a slice of life.
Jon, I made the same mistake in 2016 when I was all in tor Bernie. Never again!
Gloria here has broached the subject correctly. Until such time that the DNC does an about face and fully embraces the platforms of Sander's 2016 election bid, throws in what Alexandria Ocasio Cortez brings to the table, aggressively declares a new day in American politics that address all the inequities with a vengeance, and promises to fix what they helped create, I cannot endorse the DNC. Right here and now, ALL IS LOST. If anyone thinks they can essentially go on as before with a tweak here and there, they are every but as delusional as MAGA voters.
We are going to endure (or not) the most forceful course "correction" by this new party that nearly if not ALL Republicans have capitulated to. Everything we have counted on as bedrock over the past 80 some years will be destroyed. Through capricious, callous, gleeful and vengeful actions, laws, and edicts, the USA will become a very different country. I see awareness of that in this forum, but not in the eyes of the Americans I encounter, do business with and interact with in any way, shape or form. Football and Disney go on as if nothing has changed. As it becomes evident to the majority, they will be looking for answers because it will be clear that THIS answer was alarmingly and stupidly wrong.
New leadership COULD come from the Democrats. But they haven't even denounced neo-liberalism yet. Again, until they do, and until they admit that Bernie was precisely right and that they have been unforgivably fraudulent for decades now, the people that voted for Trump will not be fooled again. Our government has been taken over by Plutocratic forces that are not unique to America, but that only America has the chance of fixing. So far, I say, they don't agree with me.
And I did not even mention The Heritage Foundation's contribution to this cluster f**K, with their intolerable theocratic agenda and their "Bannonish" glee with the installation of a Czar. Or the appalling success of Leo Leonard's mission of taking over the Supreme Court to make it little more than a green light for the raping of America as we have known it, along with the 90% of us.
I completely agree with you. Possibly everything needs to crash and burn before something better happens, I don't think for a minute if Harris would have won Dem's would have had a serious course correction, just some more status quo.
Peter. I agreed about Sanders, Until I learned that Bernie Sanders honeymooned in Moscow and that 10 day trip shaped his views about Russia, and it also explains his opposition to aiding Ukraine.
I can’t find a credible source that says Sanders is against aid for Ukraine. He voted against the aid package because of Gaza. Sanders needs to clarify his stance on Ukraine unless he has and I can’t find it.
Gaza was a convenient excuse, it sat/sits well with many progressives,doesn't it.
I’m wondering about his position on Ukraine.
I already knew his views on Gaza.
Bernie is, after all, an experienced politician. As such he is certain to keep his views veiled.
The press is all too willing to cross examine any Dem or Independent.
Got to keep the eye on the ball. It's all about the culture. Hate Trumped logic. 90% of the margin voted against their own economic and physical health.
I supported Bernie until he picked the wrong team re Cuba. So long Florida. Same went for BLM. Down here in the tropics the Dems went for Trump.
The way for a Dem to win is to be inclusive not exclusive.
We’re not going to get anywhere until the Dem gerontocracy finally decides their tired of the party losing.
It's not us. It's them. But for psy ops we'd have won.
I was tired of it many years ago.
The Repubs had better tricksters than we did. If we had a Carl Rove, we'd have won in 1980, 1984. 2024.
This past year I wasted my time and effort chasing stuff like data mining. We could see the effects from psy ops. The bookies had it right.
*they’re*
If Kamala had to lose, then it was good that she lost big--hopefully to activate the Dem leaders into re-thinking how to win.
She didn’t lose “big” though. More people didn’t vote for trump than did.
Problem with Bernie is he is deep down a Marxist. I have antipathy towards Marx and Marxism, for one thing he is not a socialist, he was a proto libertarian,
but I have no truck with any ist or ism, be it secular or sectarian.
Ism's require unfettered devotion and loyalty, and are antithetical to critical thinking and individuality.
From what I have seen, in the eyes of a Marxist, a Marxist government can do no wrong, regardless of how antihuman they are, and in my opinion Putin the beneficiary of the residual Marxism of many on the left In the 1950s and 1960s the Brits called them Tankies (a wikipedia article on Tankie), we have a 2024 version of Tankie, in the form of Tulsi Gabbard, Jill Stein, et al.
While IMO, Trump voters are in fact, deplorable, white Christian nationalists racist, Not all are.
There is significant portion of the black and Hispanic population that are Trump humpers, despite the overt raacism of the GOP, they shunt it aside, ignore it, because there is something that trumps (no pun) race, and that is male dominance. The cry is Male power, not black power.
As regards inclusion. The racist doesn't like being told he or she is racist, the bigot doesn't like being told that he or she is a bigot.
They make pretense that they are not, that is how they survive.
Bill Maher had a TV show Politically Incorrect, very popular because people, don't like having their speech and bigotry throttled. He is still at it, only now he can safely vent on the last remaining minority that has no constituency. the Trans and is enjoined by gays like Andrew Sullivan,who angrily defends his gains but would gladly squash transwomen, probably because much of homophobia is misogynistic in origin. and he is proud of being a gay man, not a wanna be woman. (Iran has formalized this opinion as it forces gay men, if caught, into sexual reassignment surgery, which is a step up from ISIS which throws them off
roofs.)
I well imagine that there is a lot of homosexual activity in Islamic countries, for the same reason as prison "marriages" Imagine a Saudi Porn magazine with men beating off to women in abaya's.
Bigotry and prejudice exists and you can't legislate it away, trying to just exacerbates the problem, and you can''t stifle speech either, you just piss off the people whose speech is stifled.
What you can do is disarm the speech, by making it everyday. In America cunt is a female specific slur, and feminists get outraged, in England men and women are called cunt,it is like calling someone an arse.
Queer was once an epithet hurled at gay men, lesbo or dyke hulred at lesbians.
The LGBT community has owned the word queer,and it is no longer a slur.and dykes proudly call themselves dykes (as opposed to lipstick lesbians). Dykes on Bikes, a feature of every gay pride parade.
Blacks use the word niggah addressing each other and even to whites, We are long past Jim Crow and how the word was used to keep blacks down. Blacks will use the term "my niggah" affectionately. if it were common parlance it would have no demeaning effect.
I see movies these days were women are called "dicks",don't be a dick", Maybe we should stop policing language. All it does is fan the flames and builds resentment.
Berkeley was the mother of the free speech movement, until Bill Maher started calling out Islam for what it is,misogynistic and homophobic,and making jokes about their women in bee keeper suits, then the hypocrisy showed up, and they cancelled Bills performance at Berkeley.
Free speech for me but not for thee.
Now on campus's Jew hatred is de jure and permissible, but "Islamophobia"never
There is no such ting as Islamophobia, just another case of social terrorism.
A phobia is an irrational fea. Disdain and dislike for Islam or any religion is not phobic. Especially the triumphalist, intolerant, misogynistic and homophobic religions.
I've been saying, "We need a hero!" And it seems that you folks think so too.
How does somebody become a hero. Well, much to the consternation of so many of us it seems that they way to become a hero is to gun someone down by shooting him in the back. It shouldn't take a cold blooded murder to draw attention to what corporate wealth & power has done to the country. It's been obvious all along but it takes one, lone gunman who has now become a hero of sorts to many because he brought the problem front & center.
We need someone to bring all the problems about which you write to the front & center. We need heros, we really need heros. But all we get is slithering cowards making their way to Mar a Lago to kiss trump's enornous ass. That is not going to solve any problems! It is going to damn us to servitude of this evil idiot. NO! You can't call trump an evil genius, IDIOT for sure but never a genius!
Let's get to it DEMS, stand up now while you still have legs to do it!
"Idiot" , like "incredible" is overused and usually very imprecise. Calling someone an idiot mainly shows spite. IMO, Trump is not an evil genius so much as an evil wunderkind, someone whose charismatic personality, without intellect, produces political depravity.
See my response above. Biden needs to act like one.
Not going to happen Daniel, Biden is going to sink quietly into the background and hope that Der Fuhrer, forgets about him, Kamala as well.
Biden could certify the ERA, but won't. He will take the excuse that the archivist and deptuty aft the Library of Congress, has the authority to estop it by claiming that it has to be certified by congress or SCOTUS, and that is pure bullshit, but is enough of an excuse for Biden.
Biden could have taken pot off schedule 1 at any time, but didn't.
There is so much he could have done and can still do, like pardoning all those convicted for the crime of possessing small quantities of marijuana, I am not talking of drug pushers, but he won't.
YOU SAID IT, THOM!!!
Where the hell are they? I have long wondered if they are more interested in continuing to walk the halls of power than to actually exercise some. When the going got tough, these guys got going, right out the door!
It's going to take an "outsider", a "populist" non-politician, much like Trump, who was seen as an anti-politician (his recipe for victory, in my opinion) to topple the coming Fourth Reich. Once they set their little apparatus up and start screwing everyone in sight, we will need a charismatic Navalny in the streets.
I agree - but who??
@ Kerry and Sally.
I think the rationale, "Hero with A Thousand Faces" is bullshit. The Messiah didn't restore Israel.
IMHO we were screwed. We've been screwed before. 1980. Election stolen by SCOTUS. At that point, we should have stood up.
We still may have an "out." Think Romania.
Here is the out, when the Trump humpers figure out that they have been screwed by their lord and savior. That's the out.
HCR's offering today, mentions dairy farmers who rely on migrants, believing that Trump's anti immigrant talkis just bluster. It is that way all over the country, those who have financed Trump have made their wealth on the back of immigrants, and don't expect him to follow through with his threats.
Who is buying his NFT's, his sneakers, his bible, his other tacky shit, It isn't the factory worker, the UPS delivery driver, it is the well off middle class farmer, real estate broker, salesman, doctor and lawyer. What Marx called the bourgeoisie
They are like frogs in a pot on a stove.
Re migrants, Trump is an expert in visas. Uses them to bring in foreign workers so he doesn't have to hire the locals. IMHO will convert many to temporary status. Will keep many in detention to get a rake off from private companies in the prison business.
Note how he does not seek employer sanctions against the employers, who are probably 99% MAGATs.
The screwees will be people who are on govenrment benefits. Government employees.
I happen to think that Putin will take advantage of the situation and views Trump and the economy as marks. Already manipulating our currency.
I agree with everything you just said, Daniel. I go further the world reserve currency will be the Yuan, BRICS is already shifting that way, and since most of the worlds consumption is made in Asia, orBRICS countries
I have noticed that the Saudis and the UAE are courting China.
While China and Russia are squeezing us out of Africa (an important source of strategic minerals) and the Mideast, they already have Iran under their belt, and are settling differences with India, and that says something.l
I just read that China wants a gold standard.
I wonder how much is on Mars?
The Ds dropped the priceless Ming vase, which is our democracy.
Schumer & Co. effed around, now we are about to find out.
He and Nancy carried a napkin to a gunfight.
And that wait-till-the-very-last-minute, I'm a rock star, the Big Kahuna, crap that Obama pulled?
Asinine.
When you are dealing with self-described GOP political terrorists you are:
- Dealing with political CRAZIES
- Dealing with figurative SUICIDE BOMBERS
- Dealing with a GOP that would Happily BEHEAD the NATION if it HURT the Black Prez
This is an American psychosis that became fertile night-soil* for a fat, socially pathogenic turd.
*Night soil is a historical term for human excreta collected from cesspools, privies, or other containers. This material was often collected at night by workers, hence the name "night soil." It was commonly used as fertilizer in many cultures due to its nutrient content, although it posed significant health risks due to the presence of a big orange pathogen.
*
It's tough for liberals/progressives to shift into warrior mode, because we are preternatural democrats in temperament. For one, we tend to trust and be trustworthy; the conservatives tend not to be so.
We do need to find those among us with the courage of their convictions, and convictions that address the emergency we are in. I think there are people in the wings, waiting for the old folks to kindly get off the stage. like AOC, Max Frost, Greg Casar, Lucas Kunce, David Hogg, and so many more.
Jeffrey, Democrats are trusting and polite, because we have allowed others to define us, in other words we have been told what we are, and we obey in advance.
Michelle's admoniion, that "when they go low, we go high" is the road to ruin. It results in Democrats bringing, as some one above said, a napkin to a knife fight.
The right has weaponized the language, uses Orwellian speech, and we have no tools to fight it, because we d on't play the game.
The right's slogans fit on bumper stickers, the left's are long winded explanations.
They craft bigoted, authoritarian legislation, and insert the words freedom or liberty into the bill, and Democrats don't call them out for lying and abusing language.
They fight dirty and win, we fight clean and lose, and then pat ourselves on the back for our morality.
When I think of the self imposed morality I also think of the video's and photo's I've seen of people in Eastern Europe obligingly marching into trenches which are to be their mass grave.
Sometimes you have to get down and dirty, especially when the the other side has all the rules, the arbiters, and the field, slanted in its favor.
Taking the "high road" is admirable, except that the Republicans have already tunneled beneath it, causing its collapse.
Admirable doesn't win battles or wars. Dem's have been stepping into an MMA cage match with gloves and Marquis of Queensboro rules and the Republicans are street fighters.
No contest.
"The headline at KamalaHarris.com says, “OUR FIGHT CONTINUES,” and the text below it asks for donations “to hold the Trump administration accountable.” Really? How is she going to do that from wherever she and Tim Walz are hiding?"
They are all hiding. You see, Mr. Hartmann, Trump managed to kidnap and extort an entire country and its political process. The Democrats remind me of the steroid-laden body builders on Venice beach here in Southern California. They have huge muscles, but balls the size of raisins.
Trump's bullying worked. And however immoral, criminal, burlesque, detestable and unsavory, it continues to. Period, end of paragraph.
It's time for The Peoples Project 2028.
www.thepeoplesproject2028.org
The UAW also has a plan for May 2028.
We need a combination of Pete Buttegieg ( who can answer ANY question thrown at him anytime by anyone), Bernie Sanders (rabble rouser) Hakeem Jeffries ( intelligent ), and Tammie Baldwin ( courageous).
Sadly this country is still too misogynistic, racist, and homophobic.
Why are Democrats so bad at messaging??? We live in a Social Media/Podcast/Q Driven world and we need a leader to be active in that world EVERY SINGLE DAY. AOC is the closest we have to be a part of this new world and we need more like her. I'm 71 years old and realize that what worked 20 years ago does not work today. Like Sean Connery in the Untouchables Democrats need to stop bring knives to a gunfight!