"Guns are bad, I tell you." -Eminem

Another school shooting. Another eight of our beautiful children gone forever, along with two of their devoted teachers, in Santa Fe, Texas.

I'm not sure I can add any more to the dialogue. So much has been said already about the epidemic in our country.  But Little Sister has not been known to keep her fingers idle on this subject.

I have been an advocate for gun control for many years. One of my early arguments was that guns do nothing to help create. They only help to destroy. Destruction is not a value I hold. HUNTING! They cry. We do not need animal protein to live healthy lives, I reply.  PROTECTION AGAINST TYRANNICAL FORCES, they cry. Seriously? Just no, I say. We have a rule of law. SELF PROTECTION they cry. It's hard to determine the statistics, since gun violence is a U.S. officially banned research subject, but I suspect the incidents of actual self- or home-defense is actually quite low. (The LA Times has some statistics in a 2015 article). We are more likely to have one or two degrees of separation from someone who is a victim of gun violence, or who was threatened by gun violence, than someone who has protected him/herself with a firearm.

Me? I have zero degrees of separation - and if you know me, therefore, you have one. And right off the top of my head, I can think of three people who I knew personally who were shot, one of whom survived the gunshot wound. I know no one who has ever used a gun to protect themselves.

That's just outrageous. And sickening.

This topic for a blog post has been on my mind for a long time. It was more urgently on my mind after Parkland, when the kids began to rise up. A lot of people were chiming in then, and I wanted to also say my piece. But life interfered, time passed, and I got too busy to write a timely essay. And you know what I disgustingly thought? I thought to myself, "I'll just wait until the next school shooting and it will be more relevant."

I'll just wait until the next school shooting.

I'm ashamed to have that thought, and I'm ashamed of our society that allows that kind of thought to be the reality.

And here we are. Barely two months after Parkland, and we have another school shooting in Santa Fe, Texas. Ten more lives snuffed out.

Of course there are multiple issues surrounding school shootings. And of course school shootings are not the only form of gun violence that desecrates our Land. But I'm not going to go into depth about the culture of violence, the tragic state of entitled young men in our country, the misogyny that thrives in the 21st century, mental illness, the culture of fear, nor video games. I'm not going to look at toddler-related gun deaths, suicide by gun, accidental firearm discharges, domestic violence, nor hate violence.  All those issues are important factors in the gun violence epidemic in our society.  I could write for months on all of those issues, and maybe some day I'll pick apart some of those. But tonight I want to just look at the heart of the gun violence problem:  Guns and Money.

These 27 words are at the crux of the issue:

Article II: A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

Let's ignore that this amendment seems to be composed by someone without a firm command of English language composition. Even for 18th century writing style, this is a nightmare. But let's put that aside. This amendment has been parsed and discussed from here to Tuesday. Still, let me give my two cents. The gun proponents focus on the third clause, "the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."  But our forefathers did not write the amendment, "The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." There are 13 more words. They included language about a militia. They included language about security.  They included language about freedom.

I started doing some reading. What did they mean when they referred to a Militia? Is the militia mentioned anywhere else in the Constitution? What was a militia then, and what were our forefathers getting at, mentioning it in the Bill of Rights?

The Constitution itself refers to the Militia five times.

In Section Eight, which details the responsibilities of the Congress:

15: To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;

16: To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;

In Article Two, outlining the duties of the Executive Branch:

1: The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States; he may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.

In Amendment Two:

Article [II] (Amendment 2 - Bearing Arms)
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

And in Amendment Five:

Article [V] (Amendment 5 - Rights of Persons)
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

Just reading these sections of the U.S. Constitution, it is obvious that Militia, true to its word root, is a military body. It's not a private citizen.

Younger Little Sister Resister wrote the following letter to the editor in year 2000. I'll let her words stand here.

Dear Editor: 

In discussions about the government's role and the Constitution's role in gun control, the following has never been addressed. In the main body of the U.S. Constitution, in Article One, Section Eight, it very clearly defines the "militia," to which it later refers in the Second Amendment. The U.S. Constitution reads in Article One, Section 8 that "The Congress shall have power:

"To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress." 

To my understanding, this gives a very strict definition of "militia." 

The Second Amendment reads, "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed." 

If the government has the duty, clearly stated in Article One of the Constitution, to "organize, arm and discipline ... and train" this militia, this clearly does not give the implicit right for every Tom, Dick and Michael to own and use firearms. In fact, it says the very opposite. Furthermore, the Second Amendment refers to a "well-regulated" militia, which again implies strong governmental regulations. 

Clearly, if the NRA and others want to rely on the Constitution for their arguments and want to broaden the definition of "militia" to mean the common man, they should realize that the wording of the U.S. Constitution promotes more government control and regulations, not less. 

The first step in the government's responsibilities to "organize, arm, discipline and train" is to register every weapon and license every user. For such a deadly and powerful item as a firearm, this is only prudent. In licensing, individuals should be required to be trained thoroughly. Trigger locks should be required on every single firearm. New technology needs to be developed and technology that already exists needs to be used to promote one gun -- one user. 

The sales of firearms should be carefully monitored, with thorough background checks wherever guns are sold. In addition, we need to strengthen enforcement of laws that are already on the books to keep deadly weapons out of the hands of the wrong individuals. 

Perhaps Bill Clinton's new proposals can help this meet this goal. But surely, the government should have a very strong role in gun control, as outlined in the U.S. Constitution. 

Little Sister Resister, Santa Barbara

And a political cartoon by Tom Toles, my favorite cartoonist, from back in year 2000 Little Sister Resister's pocket. (Note the date of the cartoon is 1998, the year before Columbine)

This week, I went searching a bit for information about what our forefathers meant by "well-regulated" and "militia."

Well-regulated in 18th century meaning means that the thing is in good working order. It does not mean having rules and regulations applied to it. Fair enough.

A militia, however, was, in the 18th century, an organized military group, made up of citizens, but not a standing army, which as a separate body.

I found this balanced article in the Washington Post. The Founding Fathers wanted every white citizen to be a member of the militia, and they wanted each of those citizens to be armed. Interestingly, the ideas of the 18th century about arming citizens had very much to do with disarming non-whites, as much as it was about ensuring that every white person was armed.

Quotes from the article:

At its best, the Second Amendment was a commitment to citizen participation in public life and a way to keep military power under civil control. At its worst, it was a way for whites to maintain their social domination.

The United States still seems willing to tolerate a significant degree of instability and violence on the part of white American men, the demographic group responsible for the majority of mass shootings.

And yes, from the 18th century, fast forward to the 20th and 21st Century. White people in control of guns is still very much the reality. White people in control of the money is very much the reality of U.S. politics as well. And that's the second part of the problem, to my mind.

The National Rifle Association is a powerful group. It's hard to know the demographics of the members, as the NRA does not ask about gender, race, age, or religion. We do know, however, that it is made up of mostly Republicans, with 77% of members being Republican, according to Pew. And as such, I think it's safe to say that it is primarily a white, male group. It's also a very rich organization, and they use their riches to further gun rights and fight gun control legislation. Pew also has found that, by far, not all gun owners are members of the NRA, and many of those disagree with the NRA's stances and actions.

In any case, we know that there is a lot of money flowing through the NRA, and much of it goes directly into the pockets of our lawmakers. They lobby hard, and they lobby well. Much of their money is Dark Money.

And this month, as part of a congressional probe, it has come out that Russian money may have been funneled through the NRA and directly into TЯUMP's coffers to further Russia's political agenda in the USA. We aren't sure yet, as the NRA is no longer cooperating with the investigation, but we do know that the NRA contributed $30 Million into the SCROTUS campaign, while, according to the New York Times, writing in the year 2000, "In the last year, it has donated more than $540,000 in so-called soft money to Republican Party committees, while giving nothing in soft money, or unregulated donations, to the Democrats. In 1996 the NRA gave less than $100,000 in soft money to the Republican Party."

But not only does the NRA spend money to line lawmakers' pockets, they spend money to defeat candidates who even whisper about laws to control guns. Where the money comes from, and the ways in which the money flows, is complex. This is a long read from Quartz Media, but it's a good one. It explains a bit about how NRA money controls Republicans. This article from Yahoo Finance describes that the NRA is so powerful because there is no opposing organization.

(As an aside, Politifact has a great run-down of fact-checking gun and NRA claims)

Money in politics perverts our Republic, put simply. All corporate money should be out of politics, not just NRA money. The Citizens United ruling, which helps to foster the interests of Corporations over the interests of the People, should also be overturned.  We are a nation of citizens, each of whom have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It is without question that gun entitlements take away these basic citizen rights.

Money in politics is a huge issue and the root of what is wrong with our system. Before Citizens United, but more so after, money from the hands of the few that influence laws that affect the many, is a problem. If we can fix that, if we can stop money from influencing the decisions of our lawmakers, we will be better off. It's a difficult task, as you have to take the teat from their mouths. They won't let go willingly.

Back to my thought about waiting for "the next school shooting." Why is it so easy to toss around ideas like that? Perhaps we are being desensitized, or at the very least, becoming more detached. With all the pain and sorrow that these events create, the psyche has to protect itself, and so it detaches. We would be walking puddles of goo (and some of us are) if we didn't separate ourselves from the awful atrocities. The horror becomes "over there."  And there is the thought that this desensitization is actually one of the root causes of the gun violence epidemic. This excellent essay by David French of the National Review refers to an earlier essay in the New Yorker about the Threshold of Violence. It is asserted that one of the chief reasons for the mass shooting epidemic is because of a form of desensitization. More and more are reaching their violence threshold. It is becoming the norm. "Everyone is doing it!" Read both essays. It's quite a sobering outlook.

There is no one easy answer, no one path to navigate. It is complex, and the issues and the money are so very deeply entrenched, that it seems there is no way to dig out. But we must try. And that starts at the ballot box. There is where our power lies. Resist, think, and VOTE!

Thanks for reading.

Drew Sheneman

Truth is stranger than fiction

“Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't.” -- Mark Twain

Marshall Ramsey

SRSLY! WTF?

What is going on? Every day, I say things cannot get more bizarre. But they do. Every day. We continue our descent into some warped would-be Fiction.

This week's stuff includes a rambling interview with the Orange Sh*tstain's own personal television "news" mouthpiece; the withdrawal of his strange nomination for Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the call for the resignation of the lawmaker who raised concerns; a leak of Mueller questions, with a twist on the leak; the admission by his personal physician that his medical report was dictated by the patient himself, and a raid on that doctor's office for medical records; and more questions about a possible neurological explanation for his bizarre behavior.

SCROTUS nominated his Whitewash House physician, Ronny Jackson, a man who was house doctor for two Presidents and the Orange Scabies Man but who had never headed an agency before, to head the Department of Veterans Affairs. SCROTUS really liked the way he had reported on his "full physical," which I blogged about. Not only were there concerns about Ronny's ability to handle the administration of a large agency, concerns soon surfaced about his conduct on the job. There were accusations about his being drunk while on duty and handing out medications "like candy" to staff members. His nomination was soon withdrawn, but only after a keen observation (read: projection) by his boss, who remarked, "If I were him, I wouldn't do it."

After the fiasco, SCROTUS, in true "Damn the Democratic Principles" fashion, called for the resignation of Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) over the kerfuffle. Puh-leeze!

In other medical news, it came out this week that SCROTUS's former personal physician, Dr. Jacob Bernstein in New York, had his office raided by All the President's* Goons to seize medical records back in 2017.  Dr. Bernstein had let it be known that his patient takes fenasteride, aka Propecia, to treat his hair loss. Hair Hitler didn't like that very much.

You may recall that I wrote about Bernstein's bizarre 2015 medial report and that The Atlantic did an excellent analysis of the report. The report, stating that SCROTUS would be "The healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency," was most likely ghost-written. Today Bernstein admitted, yes, indeed, SCROTUS dictated the report (below).

All this medical talk brings us back to fenasteride. It's been floated that perhaps this medication can possibly account for SCROTUS's neurological symptoms.  Follow some of the links. It's a possibility!

Speaking of neurological symptoms... SCROTUS had another rambling interview, this time on the phone with his buddies at Faux and Fiends. He talked rapidly and rambling-ly for over 30 minutes. If you can stomach it, the full interview is below. I prefer the synopsis versions by Stephen Colbert and by Seth Myers. Astonishingly bizarre.











And speaking of ghost-writing... Yesterday, the list of questions that Mueller wants to ask SCROTUS was leaked to the New York Times. SCROTUS called it "disgraceful" blah blah blah, but today Mueller's former assistant speculates that because of the way the list of questions was written and the fact that there are grammatical errors, the leak must have come from TЯUMP himself.

All this within the last few days.

SRSLY, you can't make this stuff up.

Come on, folks.  Resist!

The Resisters

"The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions that I wish it to be always kept alive." - Thomas Jefferson

phdcomics.com

Once in a while I like to look for the positives in our circumstances. It's important to step back and see what is going well or acknowledge those who are doing right. HOPE for our Republic and our Democratic institutions is what carries me through.

Today, I present some of my fellow Brother and Sister Resisters. They are leading the charge to protect the liberties that the current administration threatens.

Teen Vogue was an unlikely leader in the Resistance. But lead they have, publishing articles and essays about the current political atmosphere, among the hair care tips and celebrity sightings. I cited one of their early Op/Eds, about 45's gas-lighting tendencies, in my February 7, 2017 blog post, War is Peace. Sophie Gilbert from The Atlantic tells us why it's not surprising that Teen Vogue has been carrying the gauntlet. I'm glad that they are reaching our next leaders in a visceral way.

Another early, and enduring, group of Resisters is the anonymous members of Alt National Parks. They are our federal employees, working subversively to bring to light the issues that threaten our beloved national lands. They first formed when the administration, within days of the inauguration, began to remove climate change and other science data from government websites and removed official National Park social media accounts. Folks at Badlands National Park went rogue and sent out science tweets in defiance. Park Rangers from across the Land joined them, and Alt National Parks was born. They have a strong Facebook and Twitter presence.

Dan Rather, esteemed CBS newsman, has emerged as a poignant voice in the resistance. He often posts profound thoughts on Facebook. He warns us of the dangers of SCROTUS's degradation of the press. He warns us of the dangers of losing science. He warns us of the dangers of fascism. And at the same time, he looks for the positives. He recently published a book, What Unites Us. At 86 years old, he is speaking out strongly about and for the good of our Country. Read his stuff, and be inspired.

Unexpected Members of the Resitance come from the corporate world. CEOs from across many industries have been navigating their way on the road we share. I was struck by heiress Abigail Disney's video around the time they were voting on the tax bill. She was one of a coalition of CEOs against the tax bill; she joined nearly 200 other "Women of Wealth" in signing a letter to our lawmakers speaking against it.




Hundreds of other wealthy individuals, members of a group called Responsible Wealth, signed another letter opposing the tax bill, including George Soros and Steven Rockefeller.

Another group, Patriotic Millionaires, also want to ensure that the very rich pay their fare share. Here is Eric Schoenberg to explain:



The Harvard Business Review published a good essay on CEO activism. I urge you to read it, pay attention to the statements and actions from corporate CEOs, and support the businesses that share your values.

See? There are good people in the 1% who are doing the Right Thing! Hope abounds!

And even politicians are sometimes doing the right thing. There are moderate Republicans who are standing up and voting against the policies driven by the Bratman. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and John McCain (R-AZ) have all been vocal opponents. There's also the Tuesday Group, a center-right group of Representatives. The group seems to want to work toward thinking critically and building consensus. They were an important group in the defeat of the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. And here is a list of Republicans who opposed SCROTUS's campaign, if not currently actively oppose all of his baby actions.

And this level-headed politician. This strong woman. This admirable US citizen. This outspoken immigrant. This estimable public servant. Madam Secretary Madeline Albright. Watch her interview with Stephen Colbert below, listen to her NPR interview, read her book, Fascism: A Warning. And resist.







And of course, the children. I've been so inspired by our strong young leaders, speaking up and acting for what they believe in. Just a couple snippets of Acts of Resistance by our up-and-coming leaders at the March for our Lives last month.

Emma Gonzalez in Washington DC:




And young people in Santa Fe, where I marched:





HAVE HOPE. WHAT WE'RE DOING IS VALUABLE. KEEP THE RESISTANCE ALIVE!

He is Not Smart!

"He is not smart!" -- Hair Twitler about James Comey. (I know you are, but what am I??)


I've been away again for a long time. There are a lot of topics that have developed at a pace that is hard to keep up with in real time, let alone in Busy Little Sister Resister Time!

During the last few weeks, the Presidential Train Wreck has started careening toward the curves. Our country's situation gets more bizarre by the day. It has been interesting Reality TV, for sure.

So I write here, a summary post. Then perhaps I'll dissect some issues later. I still have a Big-Picture post simmering too, but I'll leave that on the back burner some more. So, we examine the first quarter-plus of 2018, as the US teeters off the tracks of the Republic Railroad.


SCROTUS gave his first State of the Union address at the end of January. It was predictable and unremarkable, except for his self-applause that echoed in his mic. Later he called members of the US Congress "treasonous" because they often did not stand up and clap. Dictator much?

The first quarter of 2018 was rife with resignations and firings. It's status quo to have no status quo in this Lies-is-Truth-and-Ignorance-is-Strength Administration. Small and big players left their positions, including:

(List compiled from Timeline of the Trump Presidency, Wikipedia)

1/1 Vice President Mike Pence's chief lawyer, Mark Paoletta resigned

1/1 Domestic policy director, Daris Meeks resigned

1/5 National Security Agency Director Michael S. Rogers announced resignation for Spring, 2018

1/12 John Feeley announced his resignation as U.S. Ambassador to Panama due to disagreements with the administration

1/15 Nine of the twelve members of the National Park System Advisory Board resigned 

1/31 Dr. Brenda Fitzgerald resigned as Director of the Center for Disease Control over conflicts of interest.

2/1 Tom Shannon, the United States Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, resigned

2/7 White House Staff Secretary Rob Porter resigned from his position following two public allegations of spousal abuse.

2/7 Associate Attorney General Rachel Brand resigned 

2/27 Josh Raffel, a senior communications aide, resigned
2/27 Joseph Yun, the top diplomat in charge of America's Korean policy, resigned

White House Communications Director and SCROTUS right-hand woman, Hope Hicks submitted her resignation.

3/1 Roberta Jacobson, the Ambassador to Mexico, resigned

3/6 Chief economic adviser Gary Cohn announced plan to resign after President Trump announced he would impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.
3/7 U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tooke resigned

March 13 was a big day! 

• SCROTUS fired Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State
• Steve Goldstein, the United States Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs and fourth ranking diplomatic official, is fired.
• John McEntee, a long-time personal assistant to President Trump, is fired and escorted from the White House. McEntee then joined Trump's re-election campaign as a senior adviser. (....huh??)

3/16 Andrew McCabe, acting director of the FBI, is dismissed from his position late in the evening by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a day or two before his birthday and his full vesting of his retirement pension. He had already announced his resignation of his position back in January.

3/22 H.R. McMaster resigned as National Security Adviser
3/29 President Trump fireed Secretary of Veteran Affairs David Shulkin and nominated White House doctor Ronny L. Jackson to replace him (remember Ronny?)
4/10 Homeland Security Advisor Thomas Bossert and National Security Council spokesman Michael Anton both announced their resignations.
4/11 Nadia Schadlow, deputy national security adviser for strategy, resigned

Sigh...... Firings and resignations. ....just another day in the Whitewash House. It seems that more have been fired than were hired in the first place. Positions are still open throughout the administration, 15 months in. In January it was reported that there were at least 245 open positions.

And there have been more and more squawks from the Squawker-in-Chief about firing Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstien and Special Prosecutor Robert Meuller. Does he think that the investigation will suddenly disappear if he fires Mr. Meuller?  Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle have worked to protect the special prosecutor. Bob Meuller is a national hero in my book. Though all bets are off as to his fate, I'm hopeful that he will complete his job and find the truth.

I think Nikki Haley is next to exit. She was undermined and humiliated this week after she announced that sanctions against Russia were coming, and soon after IQ45 back-pedaled and said, no, no; there would be no new sanctions. That might upset his snookums!  It's not the first time Haley has stood up to SCROTUS. This analysis from Politico predicts that her reputation with him has actually improved by her standing up for herself. Still, I believe if she has a shred of self-worth, she will leave for better grounds. She's a strong woman, and I respect her, though I don't respect her respect for her boss.


And more......

Democrat Conor Lamb won a special election to represent Pennsylvania's 18th district in Congress, a district that SCROTUS won by 20 points. It was a huge victory for the Democrats, and may be a harbinger of November.

Hair Furher continued his love affair with dictators. In March he gave a speech to donors, in which he praised Chinese President Xi, saying, "He's now president for life. President for life. No, he's great. And look, he was able to do that. I think it's great. Maybe we'll have to give that a shot some day."  This kind of talk should concern each and every one of us. Deeply. 

TЯUMP called his bestie Putie to congratulate him on his "victory" in a sham election, despite being instructed by his keepers in no uncertain terms to NOT congratulate him. He was given an index card with "DO NOT CONGRATULATE" written in big bold letters. But apparently the Bromance warranted a little cuddle from one dictator to another.

Russia poisoned a former spy and his daughter living in the UK. TЯUMP was slow to condemn the acts and when pressured to expel diplomats as punishment, he agreed, but only after kicking and screaming that he would only match the number that other countries did. He really got pissed that the US was tougher than he had wanted. We expelled a number that was more than grand total of the other countries' explosions -- not the same as each country. Poor SCROTUS!  Poor Putie!

On the world stage: In Mid-March, the Talking Yam announced new tariffs for foreign goods, especially steel and aluminum. The situation escalated, with China announcing plans to retaliate with new tariffs. Wall Street did not like it and took a dip but has since recovered. There hasn't been any more news about the tariffs or the feared Trade War.

In early April, Syria used chemical weapons against its citizens and a week or so later, the US, France, and Great Britain answered with missile strikes, days after Boss Tweet telegraphed his intentions on Twitter...another hypocrisy on the 448th Opposite Day in the US. An act of war should've been big news. And it was, for a day or two. It's hard to keep up with every **breaking development** coming out of Washington. 

Former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey released a book, A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership. He skewers the Cowardly Lyin' in the book. Among other things, he likened Don Scrotolone to a mob boss, recalling, “flashbacks to my earlier career as a prosecutor against the Mob. The silent circle of assent. The boss in complete control. The loyalty oaths. The us-versus-them worldview. The lying about all things, large and small, in service to some code of loyalty that put the organization above morality and above the truth.” If you recall, I also compared SCROTUS to a mob boss. See my blog post from June 25, 2017:  Who Said It? Don Corolone or Don SCROTOLONE?

In conjunction with his book release, Comey gave an EXPLOSIVE INTERVIEW with ABC's George Stephanopoulos.

Part One:

Part Two:

Trumplethinskin tweeted back in his usual schoolyard way. My favorite was this one:

Slippery James Comey, a man who always ends up badly and out of whack (he is not smart!), will go down as the WORST FBI Director in history, by far!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 15, 2018

After comparing the sizes of their buttons earlier this year, 45 announced plans to meet directly with North Korea's Kim John Un. The CIA Director-turned-Secretary of State-nominee Mike Pompeo made a secret trip to lay the groundwork. Interesting developments, and if it were anybody else, any one with an ounce more finesse that the klutz who stumbled in to the Presidency, I would be optimistic. But it's frightening. He could do more damage and is likely to, given how much damage he's done to the Republic and to the world view of the US already. USA Today warns of the risks.

Cheeto Face pardoned Scooter Libby this month. Libby was convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice surrounding the investigation of the outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame. Is he telegraphing his willingness to pardon those who lie to the FBI in the current investigation?  This man puts the Rule of Law in danger. Even the thought of him pardoning people in the investigation of his own wrongdoing makes my head hurt.


And, First Quarter of 2018 may mark the beginning of the end....

In Mid-February, the story that is commanding most of today's airtime started to have the rocks turned over to expose the worms. On February 13, Michael Cohen admitted the truth to a Wall Street Journal story a month earlier that he paid adult film actor Stephanie Clifford, aka Stormy Daniels, $130K to silence her from talking about the affair that she had with the Orange Pimple in 2006. Cohen's admission opened up all kinds of things, from the fact that SCROTUS never signed the non-disclosure agreement so it may be null and void, to the fact that Cohen used a home equity line of his own to pay her off, to noise that 45 did not know any thing about the payoff, to a denial from the Mango Maggot that the affair even happened at all, to details emerging that he forced an "arbitration agreement" that Clifford was not notified about, to Clifford's accusations that she was threatened in a parking lot to "make the story go away."  She recently released a composite sketch of the man she says threatened her. The President* of the United States  -- who has denied having the affair in the first place -- put his thumbs into action and lent credence to her claim even as he tried desperately to deny ...something. He tweeted, "A sketch years later about a nonexistent man. A total con job, playing the Fake News Media for Fools (but they know it)!"

It still seems that we are living in the Upside Down, doesn't it?

In any case, Michael Cohen's office was raided by the FBI last week. It is still unknown if the raid had to do with the Clifford case directly. Did Cohen commit bank and wire fraud by lying to the bank about the reason for his loan? Was it an illegal in-kind campaign donation?  Will the investigation lead to illegal activities by his primary client? How does Sean Hannity play into it? Cohen has three clients, two of whom, SCROTUS and former RNC bigwig Elliott Broidy,  Cohen helped by sushing mistresses. Does Mr. Hannity have similar skeletons in his closet? FAUX News is shrugging off his huge ethical lapse in not disclosing his relationship as he "reported" on the Cohen story.

I'm eager to learn what the prosecutors are looking at with regard to Cohen and what threads will lead to SCROTUS.

Stay tuned. And RESIST!

Adam Zyglis

"Those who want to harm others do not contribute to a well regulated militia."

"Those who want to harm others do not contribute to a well regulated militia." - a High School Student from Northern New Mexico

Yesterday, I joined my daughter, my Big Sister Resister, my Sister-Resister-in-Law, and thousands of others in Santa Fe, New Mexico for the March for Our Lives. 

It was inspiring to see young adults, old hippies, children, and many others march and chant with signs to the plaza, where several speakers spoke eloquently.

The first speakers were "grown-ups;" the organizer of the event and the mayor of Santa Fe were the first two speakers. By the time NM Senator Tom Udall (D) took the podium, people were chanting, "We want the kids!" and he mercifully took the hint, pretty much said, "What he said," and handed the mic to students from all over Northern New Mexico. They were passionate, they were moving, they were insightful, they were inspirational. 

This is a powerful movement. Here is CNN's reporting about the Washington DC event. It was incredibly moving to see Emma Gonzalez, the face of the moment, standing silent for over four minutes, the time it took for the Parkland incident to take place. She's a strong leader, and I look forward to watching her path.

The dispicable NRA pushes back. They are bullies! This was just a sickening headline this week from the Washington Post: "NRA host taunts Parkland teens: ‘No one would know your names’ if classmates were still alive"  To you, sir, I say: No one would know your name if you weren't such a f*ckin @ss!

Our work is just beginning. We need to keep acting, keep resisting, and VOTE! 

Here are my photos from the Santa Fe March.

Me and Big Sister Resister!

My favorite sign of the march.

Big Sister Resister did some reasearch before making her sign

Students from Pojuaque High School carried a banner signed by marchers.

Many species are passionate about this issue

And a video

The Man in Black

"I wear the black for the poor and beaten down." - Johnny Cash

I am on an Americana music kick lately, and this morning as I was brushing my teeth, I heard Johnny Cash's song, "Man in Black." I am not sure I ever heard the song before. I'm sure I have; but I don't think I ever HEARD the song before. It's a wonderful protest song, and though it was written and recorded in 1971, I think it's a tribute to our times.

Here he is performing it for the first time at Vanderbilt University.



This afternoon, I heard that many Democratic Members of Congress planned to wear black at the State of the Union Address as a form of protest and in solidarity with the MeToo movement.

Kismet!

Embed from Getty Images

I got to thinking about protest songs. There were so many during the Vietnam Era; they practically defined rock music of the day. I hadn't heard too many this past year. I looked for some contemporary protest songs. I listened to a bunch, and here are some of my favorites.


The song that defined the 2017 Women's March, "I Can't Keep Quiet"




Mac McCaughan, "Happy New Year (Prince Can't Die Again)"

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Fiona Apple, "Tiny Hands"




Arcade Fire, "I Give You Power"




Go, Eminem!




Joan Baez, Crusader of Justice since 1959, strikes again.




And my favorite patriotic song done a new way. Chicano Batman, "This Land is Your Land"

"No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world."

"No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world."  Robin Williams 

We're very much living in a changed world.

A running theme of this blog has been the speech and language patterns of the President*. I'm naturally drawn to the subject, being a speech and language expert, and it's such a hallmark feature of this person. We return to this subject today, in a slightly different way.

A while back, I compared Don SCROTOLONE's statements to those of other mob bosses, both real and fictional. It was kinda funny, how he talked like a mob boss. An article this month in The Atlantic compares him to wannabe Fredo Corelone.

But more and more, he is has gone beyond mere Mob Boss speech and is having bouts of sounding more like a dictator. Yet then at other times, he sounds like a spoiled child. And none of it is funny.


SCROTUS is increasingly sounding like a despot.

Within the last few weeks he has indicated that he wants to bend the Justice Department to his will. He has called the DOJ "deep state;" he has threatened to fire Mueller; he is antagonistic against the deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein and Attorney General Li'l Elf Sessions.

He has both shown distrust of the DOJ and FBI and also indicates that he has the right to bend them to his will. To my mind, these concepts cannot live together, but we're living in an alternate reality, so they are married in the mind of Bonkers Man.

Some of his antagonistic language against the DOJ and against justice in general:

"Crooked Hillary Clinton's top aid, Huma Abedin, has been accused of disregarding basic security protocols. She put Classified Passwords into the hands of foreign agents. Remember sailors pictures on submarine? Jail! Deep State Justice Dept must finally act? Also on Comey & others." (Tweet, January 2, 2018)

Crooked Hillary colluded w/FBI and DOJ and media is covering up to protect her. It's a #RiggedSystem! Our country deserves better! (Tweet, October 17, 2017)

“I have (an) absolute right to do what I want to do with the Justice Department." (interview with the New York Times, December 28, 2017) 

He is extremely angry with Attorney General Jeff Sessions for not recusing himself from the Russia investigation, and seems to think that the AG is his own personal attorney. He has said the wants the li'l elf to "protect him"  a la Roy Cohn, asking a New York Times reporter, "Where's my Roy Cohn?" It's a super scary concept for him to have his "own Ray Cohn." Roy Cohn was Senator Joseph McCarthy's protector during those dark, dark days of the communist paranoia, and moved on to advise and protect other power players, including mob boss Carlo Gambino as well as Donny Trump back in the day.

SCROTUS wants to bend the Justice Department to his will. And he has! He complained that the case against Hillary Clinton was closed, and they reopened the case.

He has been openly hostile to the Li'l Elf Sessions. He has said:

A new INTELLIGENCE LEAK from the Amazon Washington Post,this time against A.G. Jeff Sessions.These illegal leaks, like Comey's, must stop! (Tweet, July 22, 2017)

Attorney General Jeff Sessions has taken a VERY weak position on Hillary Clinton crimes (where are E-mails & DNC server) & Intel leakers! (Tweet, July 25, 2107)

He is particularly quite angry that Sessions recused himself, and publicly chided him repeatedly, including telling the New York Times:

"Sessions should have never recused himself, and if he was going to recuse himself, he should have told me before he took the job, and I would have picked somebody else." (interview with the New York Times, July 19, 2017)

It came out this month that he tried to directly stop Sessions from recusing himself from the Russia Investigation.

This week it came to light that he tried to fire Special Investigator Robert Mueller. He simply wants to make his enemies disappear.

He thinks he has absolute power.

A huge red flag that fully demonstrates his dictator ways is his hostility to a free and open press. He is openly contemptuous of the institution of the free press and the people who inhabit that world. There are so many quotes to cite, and you know them well, but some of them are:

I use Social Media not because I like to, but because it is the only way to fight a VERY dishonest and unfair “press,” now often referred to as Fake News Media. Phony and non-existent “sources” are being used more often than ever. Many stories & reports a pure fiction! (Tweet, December 30, 2017)

Very little discussion of all the purposely false and defamatory stories put out this week by the Fake News Media. They are out of control - correct reporting means nothing to them. Major lies written, then forced to be withdrawn after they are exposed...a stain on America! (Tweet, December 10. 2018)

In August at a rally in Phoenix, he called members of the press "sick people" that the press is a "source of division in our country" and that the media is "trying to take away our history and heritage" with their reporting of the protestors marching against the events in Charlottesville and removing Confederate statues.

 And then this month there was this:

The Fake News Awards, those going to the most corrupt & biased of the Mainstream Media, will be presented to the losers on Wednesday, January 17th, rather than this coming Monday. The interest in, and importance of, these awards is far greater than anyone could have anticipated! (Tweet, January 7, 2018)

SCROTUS doesn't want to know that the media isn't a hostile foreign power, it is us. The press is a citizen's ears and eyes. They are Americans, they are citizens, and they are vital. Like a dictator, he sees transparency as the enemy. He may have an imagined war with the media, and truthfully it's getting to be dangerous for them. But he won't win.

A dictator has many enemies, and feels the ever-present need to silence or eliminate them. A dictator moves to jail his political opponents. SCROTUS has another imagined domestic enemy, and that is Hillary Clinton. He can not let go of the election; he can not let go of the fact that any of her supposed wrong-doings were investigated and dismissed. He continues to want to have her punished. He wants her jailed. From the campaign, when he vowed to "lock her up" to now, he is bent on having her punished.

So General Flynn lies to the FBI and his life is destroyed, while Crooked Hillary Clinton, on that now famous FBI holiday “interrogation” with no swearing in and no recording, lies many times...and nothing happens to her? Rigged system, or just a double standard? (Tweet, December 2, 2017)

Many people in our Country are asking what the “Justice” Department is going to do about the fact that totally Crooked Hillary, AFTER receiving a subpoena from the United States Congress, deleted and “acid washed” 33,000 Emails? No justice! (Tweet, December 2, 2017)

He strong-armed the Department of Justice into re-opening the Clinton email case, as well as investigating the Clinton Foundation and the people who prepared the SCROTUS dossier. It's dangerous and it's tyrannical.

And just today, the deputy director of the FBI, Andrew McCabe, another fine lawman, quit. Speculation is that SCROTUS shoved him out.

He had taunted him in tweets repeatedly, things like:

How can FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, the man in charge, along with leakin’ James Comey, of the Phony Hillary Clinton investigation (including her 33,000 illegally deleted emails) be given $700,000 for wife’s campaign by Clinton Puppets during investigation? (Tweet, December 23, 2017)

He also reportedly asked McCabe how he voted. Stinky, stinky. Dictator-y, dictator-y!

As I have written in an earlier post, SCROTUS is a bully, publicly railing against most everyone. He does not descriminate. Even former allies, if they dare to speak against him or stand up to him, come under his Twitter thumb. He insults and bullies just about everyone. Everyone, that is, except other dictators. Those people, he tends to praise.

He has said about China's strongman Xi:

My meetings with President Xi Jinping were very productive on both trade and the subject of North Korea. He is a highly respected and powerful representative of his people. It was great being with him and Madame Peng Liyuan! (Tweet, November 9, 2017)

Looking forward to a full day of meetings with President Xi and our delegations tomorrow. THANK YOU for the beautiful welcome China! @FLOTUS Melania and I will never forget it! (Tweet, November 8, 2017)

"He certainly doesn't want to see turmoil and death. He doesn't want to see it. He is a good man. He is a very good man and I got to know him very well." (Reuters interview, April 28, 2017)

Likewise, he is smitten with the Philippines' strongman Rodrigo Dutarte. SCROTUS praises him, too, saying in a Whitewash House memo after a telephone conversation,

President Trump enjoyed the conversation and said that he is looking forward to visiting the Philippines in November to participate in the East Asia Summit and the U.S.-ASEAN Summit. President Trump also invited President Duterte to the White House to discuss the importance of the United States-Philippines alliance, which is now heading in a very positive direction.

Though he has taunted North Korea's Kim Jong-un with schoolyard insults, he has also sung the praises of the brutal Korean dictator.

At a very young age, he was able to assume power. A lot of people, I'm sure, tried to take that power away, whether it was his uncle or anybody else. And he was able to do it. So obviously, he's a pretty smart cookie." (CBS, April 30, 2017)

I probably have a very good relationship with Kim Jong Un,” Mr. Trump said in the Thursday interview. “I have relationships with people. I think you people are surprised. (Wall Street Journal, January 11, 2018)

And of course, he has never dissed his bestie, his sweetie, his snookums, Putie. I wrote a post several months ago about his love affair with his Co-Dictator of the USA, Vladimir Putin.

Words matter.

If you wanna know why he is chummy with these and other world despots, you might want to follow the money. Some call it conflict, he calls it the love of money.

There are some excellent articles looking deeper at Combover Caligula's dictator behaviors.

Here's a nice write-up from NPR of the concerns about SCROTUS's chumminess with other dictators.

A Washington Post article, which annotates Senator Jeff Flake's (R- AZ) speech comparing SCROTUS to Stalin.

A Newsweek article that quotes a foreign policy expert as saying TЯUMP would be a dictator by now in any other country.

The Independent (UK) showcases Tony Schwartz, SCTROTUS's ghostwriter for The Art of the Deal, who says that the President* wants to be a dictator.

A Politico article, which talks about the fashion and design sense that smacks of authoritarianism.

A video on Business Insider, which directly compares the Mango Mussolini to three world dictators.


Here is Trevor Noah recapping the Dictator-y Behaviors, better than I have:

....But let's just give him the benefit of the doubt for a moment. Perhaps he's not a Dictator Wanna Be. Maybe he's just being a childish bully. As I've examined before, his language is very child-like, and he throws schoolyard taunts at anyone who he perceived has wronged him. And his behavior is positively infantile. You don't need me to tell you that.

The sensational book Fire and Fury reveals that "everyone" said Trump is "like a child."

Just last week, when the government shut down briefly over a partisan disagreement, the outgoing message on the Whitewash House voicemail showed his childishness. You wanna bet on anyone other than SCROTUS directing this poor woman to record that message?

You can listen to the outgoing voicemail message along with other funny stuff with Jimmy Kimmel:




and Stephen Colbert:

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And remember when the UCLA basketball players were arrested in China and SCROTUS used his influence to nudge for their release? What was his reaction when he felt that not enough credit and thanks and boot-licking was done? He literally screamed, "IT WAS ME!"

Here is an excellent write-up from The Atlantic, The Infantilization of a President. Within that essay is a link to a brilliant catalogue of observations from insiders into the childlike behaviors of the Toddler-in-Chief.

Paul Hands

So what is the worse scenario? That he is a chldish, ignorant narcissist who wants to surround himself with yes-men and doesn't-matter-if-she-says-no women and who thinks that he can fire anyone who displeases him? Or that he is a calculating cold dictator bent on rising to power and destroying the foundations of the Republic?

It's most likely "A" but we cannot discount the possibility of "B" - - and we must diligently protect our Democracy's institutions, her checks and balances, her very core values in either case. Because either man is capable of eroding her greatness. He already has.

I have always had a great appreciation for our forefathers, those brilliant men who set up a brand new government from scratch with the deepest ideals. The appreciation is being renewed. Those ideals are what is keeping us afloat. We must all be the soldiers who lift Lady Liberty across these dangerous waters to the other side.

Keep resisting. Stay strong. Have hope. Speak Up. Act on your ideas.

And change the world!