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Reports of protests are overblown. A few incidents around the country, but nothing major.

5 (45.5%)

A few major incidents in capitals, but nothing much in DC.

5 (45.5%)

A major incident in DC, but nothing much around the country.

0 (0%)

More than 10 capitals have major upheavals, but nothing much in DC.

0 (0%)

A major incident in DC plus more than 10 capitals with significant upheavals.

1 (9.1%)

More than half the capitals around the country have problems with protesters, but DC is quiet.

0 (0%)

DC has major problems, while more than half the capitals around the country also have considerable trouble with protesters.

0 (0%)

Huge disruption to the day.

0 (0%)

Total Members Voted: 9

Voting closed: January 19, 2021, 10:49:21 PM

[bodiddley]

Really the outlines of fascism are there, it's just unlikely Trump is capable of pulling the strings and putting it in place.

The fact that we came as close as we did to having 10,000 active service troops on the streets is fucking scary.  The guardrails held in this case, but we can't take for granted that it will always be so. 

Don't think that Trump tossing an extra $200B a year at the military wasn't to buy allegiance.  The military budget is up to $750B per year, from $535B in Obama's last budget.

There are a lot of worrying signs.  Militarizing the DC streets could have made it awfully hard for a peaceful transition should Trump lose.

[facilitatorn]

http://www.salon.com/2020/06/07/coronavirus-pandemic-triggered-one-of-the-greatest-wealth-transfers-in-history_partner/

[NeedsAdjustments]

While the House Dems could impeach him on a new charge of high crimes and missed directions, would it do any good? Actually i think it might be counterproductive and just another failed attempt to rouse Repubican courage.

120,000 dead Americans and a "president" who clearly doesn't give a shit.  Massive civil unrest over extrajudicial killings of black people and a "president" who only wants to make it worse.   An intelligence community and DOJ actively looking at ways to investigate the "president's" political opponents so that he might win reelection...we could of course go on.  But all of these things are reason for Trump to step down, and the mechanisms are there to force him to do so.

Imagine if McConnell was more interested in our country remaining Democratic than he was ramming through unqualified politicos into life-long judge positions.   He would, theoretically, be open to hearing from prominent Republicans who know what they are talking about if they say "Hey, we can't wait until the election to find out exactly how authoritarian Trump will go." 

Does a Powell only not call for his resignation because he knows McConnell is not that person?  Maybe.  But if you see the guy is a threat to our Democracy but are willing to see how much more damage he can do over the next six months?  Thats weak.

[Echo4]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/viewpoint-im-a-conservative-%E2%80%94-but-this-is-ridiculous/ar-BB156F63?ocid=sf&fbclid=IwAR111JldqotQQr1_k4mKJrf8ppZxk3yGtkcbFv9V27Cw63aPm3ikXhKLP4U

[NeedsAdjustments]

Militarizing the DC streets could have made it awfully hard for a peaceful transition should Trump lose.

That is one nightmare scenario.  An election through mostly mail-in ballots gives him the opening he needs to say the results are tainted, and that he isn't going to leave.  Enough Republicans shrug their shoulders, or say "he's right!"  A military and law-enforcement establishment willing to take orders rather than do the right thing...

Anyone who thinks the above scenario isn't a possibility hasn't been paying attention to what the fuck has been going on the last three years.

[bodiddley]

Perhaps a mail-in ballot election in which the postal service has been defunded and is struggling to function ...

Heaps of mail-in ballots could also mean that reelection results aren't known for a week or so, instead of the quick victories we are accustomed to, which would give Trump time to argue against the results and refuse to leave.

[bankshot1]

While the House Dems could impeach him on a new charge of high crimes and missed directions, would it do any good? Actually i think it might be counterproductive and just another failed attempt to rouse Repubican courage.

120,000 dead Americans and a "president" who clearly doesn't give a shit.  Massive civil unrest over extrajudicial killings of black people and a "president" who only wants to make it worse.   An intelligence community and DOJ actively looking at ways to investigate the "president's" political opponents so that he might win reelection...we could of course go on.  But all of these things are reason for Trump to step down, and the mechanisms are there to force him to do so.

Imagine if McConnell was more interested in our country remaining Democratic than he was ramming through unqualified politicos into life-long judge positions.   He would, theoretically, be open to hearing from prominent Republicans who know what they are talking about if they say "Hey, we can't wait until the election to find out exactly how authoritarian Trump will go." 

Does a Powell only not call for his resignation because he knows McConnell is not that person?  Maybe.  But if you see the guy is a threat to our Democracy but are willing to see how much more damage he can do over the next six months?  Thats weak.

You're preaching to the choir. My point was impeachment failed. There are scant signs Repubs have grown any more balls to move against the dictator Donnie because he bungled Covid or called out the troops to quell civil unrest.

The House Dems proved their case against Trump re Ukrainanian interference in the upcoming election and could only get 1 R-senator to vote with them. Trump should have been convicted. Its not going to happen now.

Could there be an internal R-party revolt? maybe, but doubtful, unless they see him go under 30% and threatening them directly.

Or maybe the craven motherfuckers juice the market and hope an economic rebound in Q3 get Trump his support back.

IMO Dem energies are better spent organizing and mobilizing the registering very pissed off voters.


 

[Echo4]

Militarizing the DC streets could have made it awfully hard for a peaceful transition should Trump lose.

That is one nightmare scenario.  An election through mostly mail-in ballots gives him the opening he needs to say the results are tainted, and that he isn't going to leave.  Enough Republicans shrug their shoulders, or say "he's right!"  A military and law-enforcement establishment willing to take orders rather than do the right thing...

Anyone who thinks the above scenario isn't a possibility hasn't been paying attention to what the fuck has been going on the last three years.

He doesn't need the mail-in ballots to say that. He already said it about 2016 - no evidence required.

And similarly, we've been considering his resistance to being replaced when he loses for years. It's not truly worse now than then and possibly better, as he has managed to drive home to the military leaders just how unstable he is, which he had not done, I think, to nearly the extent needed to refuse his orders about a lack of transition previously.

I'm kind of grateful, in a sick way, for this protest and surrounding events.

[bodiddley]

http://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/07/kamala-harris-biden-criminal-justice-reform-304534

Interesting in terms of the recent back and forth here over Senator Harris.

Thanks for that.
Harris is smart and has smartly rebranded herself.
Of course, being an AG and being a senator are rather different jobs.
But she knows how to get into the conversation and how to get involved.  I like that, even if her law enforcement days are somewhat worrisome.

I have trouble picturing Biden picking anyone but Harris.
I think I tagged her at 85% the other day.

[bodiddley]

The new comments came a day before federal data showed the nation facing a 13.3 percent unemployment rate, and as a new analysis showed the fortunes of U.S. billionaires increased by $565 billion between March 18 and June 4. That 11-week period also saw 42.6 million Americans filing jobless claims.

Can you say WEALTH TAX?

[NeedsAdjustments]

And similarly, we've been considering his resistance to being replaced when he loses for years.

Again, to remind you (and bankshot1) the context of the discussion is Republican resistance.  Yeah, of course we have known about Trump's authoritarian tendencies for years.  But there was a time when those concerns could be dismissed as the fever dreams of the Left.  We knew what kind of person Trump was, but someone in denial could look away.

There is no possible way to do that now.  Its out in the open.  Both that Trump would be willing to subvert the election any way he can, that he has successfully eroded the DOJ and DOD to do it, and that Republicans in Congress would let him.  Which is why you are seeing some, particularly in Defense, call it out.

But if you are a Republican looking to use your platform to call attention to these things, it doesn't make sense to me to say "...so I'm voting for Biden."  You are talking about a man who is an active threat to fair elections.

[bodiddley]

Calling for armed protesters to disrupt and threaten state gov'ts into reopening the economy was a scary moment.  Especially the armed protesters in the gallery above the state legislators.

This is worrisome too:
Armed bystanders watch Floyd protesters march in Indiana

I've been waiting for 2nd A supporters to show up for 1st A protests.
Maybe it hasn't happened in the cities because of the size of the protests, but we'll see what goes down when say a thousand armed Trump supporters show up to an anti-police violence rally in say Atlanta or Birmingham.

[bankshot1]

The general's blowback on Trump is heartening, but "Republican resistance" is mostly a theoretical construct.

The House Republicans are fucking crazy and have totally drunk the kool-aid, and the Senate-Rs are for the most part cowards.

They lost a major voice of decency when McCain died.

Its possible that the voter who used to ID as a Repub get fed up and bolt the party in 2020 (and a shrinking R-base explains why Trump's R-approval #s are high as the supports is getting boiling it down to hard core deplorables) but IMO the party infrastructure seems wholly corrupted

[Kam]

Most climate change occurs naturally, ice ages come and go.
Human action has very little impact on climate change.

And you know this because you've studied climatology and read the best science on the issue.  Or because a rightwing guy on OZ radio said so.

You don't think 6B people and 200 years of burning fossil fuels can affect the climate (and human health)?  And gee, there just happen to be a number of much safer, and soon to be much cheaper, fuel options out there.

For a variety of reasons, especially situating cities on coastlines, humans can be greatly affected by even small climate change.  It's mostly Big Oil, Bug Business and Greed opposing Science and Humanity.  Not hard to pick a side, especially since it is the one that is almost certainly right.

Good graphic on climate change here: https://xkcd.com/1732/

[Echo4]

The new comments came a day before federal data showed the nation facing a 13.3 percent unemployment rate, and as a new analysis showed the fortunes of U.S. billionaires increased by $565 billion between March 18 and June 4. That 11-week period also saw 42.6 million Americans filing jobless claims.

Can you say WEALTH TAX?

What is it compared to Feb 14? March 18th was the bottom of the market and without knowing what the total value they had on March 18th was it is impossible to tell where that increase comes from.