Kill or…No, Just Kill…

by MyBaconPress

MAGA gonna murder, I guess…
Cons are out with their message that the left is out-of-control dangerous. CRAZY! Unpredictable and unhinged.

Meanwhile, cons have taken to mailing powdered Fentanyl to people associated with the voting processes in various places. Yeah, the left is out-of-control dangerous…

As a side note: cops have made videos in which one of their deputies just touches Fentanyl and the deputy falls to the ground and goes into seizures. The videos are an attempt to scare the daylights out of people who might use Fentanyl. (“See how dangerous it is?”) Fentanyl IS dangerous. Just not touch-it-and-die dangerous. But MAGA, apparently, believes these videos are gospel so they’re lacing envelopes with Fentanyl and mailing ’em out.

I should add that at least one of the envelopes also contained a couple of symbols often associated with the left. The problem is, the same envelope also included a pentagram, often associated with devil worship. That’s because MAGA cons think all lefties are immoral devil worshipers so, naturally, we would include a pentagram on pretty much all of our communications. It’s a wonder they didn’t sign it, “Don’t blame conservatives for this. It’s from some libtard!” Smooth. Now we’ll never know which side it came from…

Fortunately, the envelopes not likely to kill anyone.
Unfortunately, the cons are perfectly willing to try…

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If not murder, might as well cheat…
The cons have realized Donny is going to lose his case in the NY fraud trial. I say, “…going to lose,” he has already lost. The judge has already ruled that the Trump Organization lied, lied, and then lied again. These days, it seems as if his entire so-called “fortune” may have been a lie from the start. It didn’t take a math genius to figure it out. A building appraised at, say, $18 million dollars is claimed to be worth say, $1.8 BILLION when he wants a loan against it and the SAME building is claimed to be worth say, $1.08 when it’s time to pay taxes. Pretty clear fraud, so even the cons KNOW this one is bad for Donny.

Enter Rep. Elise Stefanik, (R, of course). She’s decided to try to save the day by filing a letter accusing judge Engoron of bias and calling on the judge to recuse himself. Please note: that’s a United States Representative, a Federal position, sticking her nose into a NY State issue. Yes, she’s from the state but she has no business in a state court issue.

I’m pretty sure Engoron will line his bird cage with the letter and keep doing his job. He’s very good at it. He’s SO good, the cons are terrified of him. I kind of like it that way. I’ll be watching for the recusal letter for bias that comes from the cons when Aileen “Loose” Cannon presides over the stolen documents case in Florida and visibly loves Donny so much she publicly offers to hold him in a supportive embrace…

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Okay, so now, even Israeli apologists are starting to get uncomfortable with the decisions being made in this latest hot fight. The last number I know of Palestinian civilians killed (so far) is 10,000 with at least 4,000 of them being children. (Did you know? Most of the Palestinian middle generation has been wiped out completely. Gaza is mostly populated by older people and young children.) Israel has announced (you heard it here, first) they won’t be leaving Gaza anytime soon (read: ever).

One of the attackers, a guy who DID, in fact, participate in a drive-by shooting that killed someone, was arrested and is in Israeli custody. Do the crime, do the time, I’m okay with that. But then Israel went to the family home, where the guy hadn’t been for years (except occasional visits to see his children) and where the family knew nothing of his plans (that anybody can prove), and blew it up, leaving a woman and three children homeless. That’s called collective punishment. It’s a war crime. It’s immoral as hell. It’s very likely a tremendously successful recruitment tool for Hamas or whatever the next group calls themselves. And make no mistake, there will be a next group. One man’s “terrorist” is another man’s “freedom fighter.” Minutemen, anyone?

Also, it drew a public rebuke from the United States. Israel basically – I’m paraphrasing, here – told the U.S. to pound sand. Their ongoing attempt at genocide hides behind the line, “Israel has the right to protect itself.” Agreed. But they’ve gone WAY beyond that, at this point. If a guy punches you in the face, you have the right to defend yourself to the extent necessary to ensure your safety. Perfectly reasonable. You do NOT have the right to beat that man to death, then go kill everybody the man has ever known, then blow up his house.

I’ll tell you this: If you DO take that course, you’ve gone from being a victim to being a perpetrator in your own right and I’d say Israel is comfortably in that category now…

Little Pleasures…

by MyBaconPress

When he first got elected, I didn’t know much about Mike Johnson. I can’t TELL you how much I wish that was still the case. This guy is as crazy as any MAGA ever. And just to make sure he puts the cherry on top, he’s ALSO a security risk. For one thing, he was instrumental in trying to help Donny betray America. That’s bad enough, but he ALSO worries SO MUCH about his 17-year-old son looking at porn (“self-pleasure” being the sin it is), they have an app that tattles to someone when you turn on porn on ANY of your devices. (That’s why the 17-year-old is always borrowing his friend’s electronics.)

Okay, maybe you don’t understand how things like that work so let me offer you a thumbnail. Somewhere, there’s a company, with people working in it (we don’t know any of them and they likely change over time), that has full and complete access to ALL of the electronics of the Speaker of the House, next in line to the President of the United States after the VP. This, of course, creates a route for people of malevolent intent (say…Donny’s Russian buddies) to get access to the inner workings of the Speaker of the House. Cons don’t seem to care. They’re FAR too worried that Hunter once did some cocaine and took photos of himself in the bathtub. Priorities, people.

Since EVERY Republican voted for this guy, I had hoped that, maybe, he was just a teeny-weeny bit more moderate than your standard MAGA. As it happens, he’s in the extreme arm of the movement, carrying the MAGA flag (it’s all white, of course), and leading the parade (wherever Donny tells him to.)

He claims not to have any bank accounts, anywhere. What?!? How does a guy like that manage in the modern world with no bank accounts? I’d bet he doesn’t. I’d guess he just keeps that public disclosure information to himself. You know, like Clarence Thomas likes to do. Possibly, for the same reason. But he’s Speaker of the House, now, and people are on to him. If he HAS a bank account, reporters WILL find it. How does he cash his House paycheck? (And can you believe we still have to pay those useless f*cks?)

Clearly, he plans to try to govern according to MAGA delusions, too. These guys just keep trying to force reality into their preferred perceptions but it never works and they just don’t get it. It never sinks in that reality is reality and delusion is delusion and ne’er the twain shall meet. So, since the cons took over, they have only managed to finally elect a Speaker, dump that Speaker, eventually bring in a new Speaker, and initiate an “investigation” into Joe Biden for…reasons. Useless. (Good. Crazy is dangerous…)

The thing is, the founders never foresaw this kind of insanity in the House. ALL spending bills start at the HOUSE (technically. In reality, they don’t always originate there but the House has to approve first.) So…the debt ceiling the cons don’t understand? Problem. The next budget talks? Problem. Funding Ukraine? Problem. (Cons want Putin to win that war so they don’t want to help Ukraine. They’re mad at Ukraine because Ukraine refused to help Donny cheat in the election.) Cons don’t LIKE cheating in elections – unless, of course, THEY’RE the ones doing the cheating. Then they’re all in.

I’ll tell you this: It’s really quite simple. If you love America, you’ll never vote Republican…

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Donny got angry that his kids are part of his criminal enterprise and got called to the stand for it. He barked at the judge, “Leave my kids alone!” No. They’re criminals, just like you. They should be punished, just like you. At least two of them are going to jail, just like you. But the cons dutifully responded to Donny’s faux outrage by issuing subpoenas to pretty much everybody Joe Biden knows, including his lost son’s widow, for some reason. Donny made pretty clear it’s a petty response to bringing Donny Jr, Eric, and Ivanka to testify. Petty.

I’d bet money that Biden’s family’s testimony will be FAR less incriminating that Donny’s family’s testimony has been for him so…bring em…

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Donny says he wants to bring over 100 witnesses in his NY civil fraud case. Yet another stalling tactic I’m sure will fail. I doubt it’s POSSIBLE there are over 100 people with relevant information that is new. (They’re not supposed to bring witness to simply repeat information someone else has already brought up.)

He doesn’t get to ramble and he doesn’t get to give speeches, he doesn’t get to repeat some lie, over and over until his audience is mind-numbed and mesmerized and he CERTAINLY doesn’t get to throw temper-tantrums until he gets his whiny way. (Archaic reference alert:) As Joe Friday used to say, “Just the facts, please.” Donny always, always, ALWAYS loses on “just the facts.”

I’ve got to confess: I’m enjoying this…

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Hey, try to act surprised. Over 10,000 dead, so far, in Palestine. Over 4,000 of them babies. (“Oh, the babies,” whined the Israel apologists before not caring and giving Palestinian babies “what they deserve.”) Netanyahu says Israel will have a security interest in Gaza for the “foreseeable future.” You (may have) read it here, first. It’s EXACTLY how Israel plays it’s cards, over and over. Agitate your target until they over-react, then punish the HELL out of them for their over-reaction and take still MORE of their land, agitating them further. It’s been going on since 1947 and it won’t stop until Israel pushes Palestine off the map and into the ocean completely. It’s got to be getting harder for the Israel apologists to make their case…

Hamas (not Palestine) says they want to push the Israelis into the ocean once and for all but has no power to do it. Israel says, “Can’t we all just, get along?” and then continues to push Palestinians into the ocean on a daily basis because they DO have the power (thanks, U.S.) – they just have to manage the “optics…”

Listen, it’s great to be vindicated and all but…what a crappy thing to be right about…

21st Century People…

by MyBaconPress

Yesterday, I heard a guy talking on the radio. He’s a conservative. He said Republicans believe the far left has taken over the Democrat party and they’re driving the country to ruin and it scares the bejesus out of the right so THAT’S why the right are acting like assholes. The exact opposite of the truth. Of course, every conservative accusation is an admission, though.

I’m not sure we have a single social or economic problem that can’t trace it’s roots back to conservative policy and/or conservative thinking. The right launched it’s “culture war” against everyone else decades ago but it started really heating up a few years back. Then, with the evil Dobbs decision in 2022, the right has gone into overdrive, trying to force their 18th century viewpoint on 21st century people. It isn’t going well for them. The problem seems to be, it isn’t the 18th century, anymore.

But the culture war, and in particular Dobbs, seems to have motivated the 21st century people to action. Yesterday saw a mid-term vote in several states for various offices and issues. The right was trying, through one means or another, to take enough control in enough states to be able to codify much of their 18th century agenda into law.

I’d say the left won this round. Virginia handed control of their state legislature to the Democrats, stopping Republican governor Glenn Youngkin from enacting his evil 18th century agenda. The Democratic governor of Republican-leaning Kentucky won reelection based on his support for abortion rights. Ohio finally settled the reproductive rights issue once and for all by codifying the rights into their state constitution. Mississippi is the only “miss.” They opted to stay 18th century by returning their Republican governor to the governor’s office. You might want to stay out of Mississippi for the foreseeable future.

So congratulations to the Democrats and the 21st century, in general. Conservative faith based stupidity is very difficult to overcome but little signs like this give me hope that, slowly but surely, we’re getting it done. Now we have to carry that forward to the national elections and get those Republican crazies out of Congress once and for all and we can get this country back on track…

A Trial and A Test…

by MyBaconPress

Donny gets to testify today! He must be so excited. He finally gets his chance to set the deep state, conspiratorial prosecutors straight. All he has to do is step onto that witness stand, swear to tell the truth, and then bring it – all the evidence and proof of innocence he’s been swearing he has. And he must. ALL of his supporters know he didn’t do anything wrong because he told them he didn’t. That’s all they need. The rest of us agree with the evidence that says otherwise so today is Donny’s opportunity to set us all straight.

I expect dissembling. (That means hiding one’s true self behind a false appearance.) That’s him all over. Putting Trump on a witness stand is one of the most dangerous things (for him) I’ve seen in a long time. I can’t remember having heard of Donald J. Trump speaking the truth even one time – ever. How the heck does he do so on the stand today? If he speaks to avoid perjury, his base might (probably won’t, but might) hear him confess truths they don’t like. If he speaks to support his whiny, poor-me campaign position (a more likely outcome), he’ll be facing new perjury charges.

If he IS the idiot the evidence suggests he is? He’ll do what he did in his deposition and explain how using his gut to value property is “just the way it’s done” and that he has “always done it that way.” Of course, valuing property with his gut feeling is exactly what the case is about so I think he’d better start moving his stuff out of Trumpless Tower right away…

MAGA won’t watch. They’ll stick their heads in the ground and pretend all is well and work to reaffirm their pretended belief that Donny is an innocent victim. They’ll be shouting about some new, imagined “outrage” committed by some Democrat someplace in an effort to distract but they won’t distract me. I’ve been waiting for this moment FAR too long to look away now. I’m looking forward to it as much as MAGA fears it.

If ever you want proof
MAGA doesn’t want truth,
just watch them avoid the good work of the sleuths…

Sorry. Sometimes, you just gotta rhyme…

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The Ohio election, tomorrow, is one I plan to keep an eye on. Ohioans are voting on reproductive control and who has it, the affected people or a bunch of old white men. They’re also voting on recreational use of cannabis. I’m expecting a large turnout. When the cons tried to slip a vote past the electorate in weirdly timed August special election, 39% of the registered voters turned out and slapped them down. That was AFTER the 2022 affirmation by the voters (by 51%) that they wanted to keep reproductive control in the hands of the people, not the legislature. Now they have to come out and do it one more time.

The anti crowd has used every single “fact(ish)” they could muster, manage, and make up to try to convince people that old white men know better than women. Nevertheless, women persist in their belief that THEY should decide their reproductive choices and whether or not to use birth control. Oh, and get this: some MEN believe it, too. (Whatever happened to the proper respect for the sacred male seed?)

The anti crowd tried to frame the whole question as a matter of parental rights, despite the fact that – FAR too commonly – it’s often a parent the young women in question needs protection from. There’s also that stupid, stupid story about how women, just in general, mind you, like to wait until the day before their due date – and run in for a late term abortion – just because it’s more fun that way, I guess. Antis love to pretend EVERY abortion is late-term but smart people know that 1) late term abortions are comparatively rare and 2) they almost always represent unthinkable pain and suffering for the parents because, generally, those parents wanted that child and something serious went wrong.

But it’s the conservative way: when the truth doesn’t support your position, lie! Why they prefer that to reconsidering their faulty position, I’ll never understand.

Just to make sure there’s a large turn-out for this ballot measure – like people might take a ho-hum attitude about their reproductive control – Ohio ALSO has legalized recreational cannabis on their ballot this election. I expect a high turnout, legalized recreational cannabis in Ohio, and enshrinement of the individual’s reproductive control into the Ohio state constitution…

Who Wins, Who Loses?

by MyBaconPress

It’s pretty clear to me that I’m supposed to pick a side in the Israel/Hamas conflict. The side I pick? Neither. No matter how I look at it, I don’t see any good guys in this fight. Supporters of Israel ignore bad behavior by Israel and embellish bad behavior by Palestine. (Not Hamas, Palestine.) Supporters of Palestine can’t ignore bad behavior by Israel and see Hamas and the majority of Palestinians as separate.

No rational person can justify Hamas shooting rockets into the middle of civilian populated areas nor any other portion of their attack. Brutally murdering 1,400 human beings, many of them children, at best, seems an over-reaction to the metaphorical beard-pulling and face-flicking aggravations of Israel. But it was exactly the response Israel wanted, needed, to go in and take more land and kill more Palestinians.

Every week since this conflict heated up – again – Bill Maher, a devout supporter of Israel, repeats Hamas rhetoric about destroying Israel and pushing them off into the ocean. He never seems to notice that while Israel never says they have the exact, same goal for Palestine, their actions tell the story. I’ve never understood how stated attempted genocide from one side is an unforgivable outrage, but lived attempted genocide from the other side is supposed to be perfectly acceptable.

After the initial Hamas assault, the press in the US went into overdrive focusing on the number of innocent Israeli children Hamas had killed. (A large part of the reason I couldn’t possibly support Hamas.) But in Israel’s response, they’ve killed – as of this writing and according to the UN – over 3,900 children with another 1,250 children missing and presumed buried under rubble. Children. That’s four times (so far) the number of people (not just children) Hamas killed, but I don’t hear much about that in the American press.

There’s one more piece that weighs in on my thinking. The UN estimates Hamas membership at around 30,000 to 40,000 people. (I’ll use an average of 35,000.) Gaza is home to 2.2 million people. That means that Hamas represents 1.6% of the population in Gaza. One point six percent. Israel is taking vengeance on the entire 2.2 million person population – and they’re using US supplied bombs to do it.

Yeah, yeah, Israel has the right to “defend itself” – and they do. But this whole fight reminds me of when George Zimmerman stalked Trayvon Martin until Martin reacted, then Zimmerman used Martin’s reaction as an excuse to murder him. I’m not sure I could come up with a better recruiting weapon for Hamas. Well played, Zimm…uh…Israel.

Biden has tried to warn Netanyahu, Israel’s Prime Minister, that the brutality of his “response” is quickly eroding support for Israel in the US. So far, Netanyahu doesn’t care. This is an opportunity Israel has been waiting for and they’re seizing it. US support for Israel will remain unwavering but there’s only one reason: Israel provides eyes and ears for the US in the Middle East. It’s a strategic alliance.

I’ll tell you this: Like I said, I don’t see any good guys in this conflict but I DO see some innocent people who have gotten caught up in the fighting and I don’t want my tax dollars to be used killing innocent Palestinian babies. I sure do wish there was some super-duper invisible cloud being who could step in and stop this insanity…

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As a direct result of his criminal behavior, Donny is about to lose his business “empire.” The whole kit-and-caboodle. Prosecutors have proven, beyond doubt, that Trump’s entire business “genius” has been predicated on fraud and lying. So, naturally, his support is – increasing? Yep, that’s what it says. Increasing. MORE people support the criminal fraudster because he IS a criminal fraudster. American mental acuity can be very impressive…

In fairness to them, his supporters simply refuse to believe he’s the criminal fraudster he is – and you can’t make somebody understand something they adamantly refuse to understand. I guess that’s a good thing for Donny. The loyalty of his deceived believers is going to be his primary source of income in the very near future and he has expensive tastes. They’d better get yet another job to keep him in the lifestyle to which he’s become accustomed while they continue to try to pay his legal debts and fines for him as well.

I’ll tell you this: I see Trump living off the efforts of his supporters as the worst kind of welfare. He’s taking money he doesn’t deserve from people who have better things to do with their own money. That kind of makes him the world’s biggest Welfare Queen, the most astounding Welfare Queen, the greatest Welfare Queen in history…

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Daylight Saving Time ends again and we’re back to Standard. It seems to do little more than kill a few people trying to adjust to the time change a couple of times every year. What a stupid, stupid idea and don’t we all look like fools (except Arizona and Hawaii) for continuing the practice?

Let’s just set it at Standard Time, leave it at Standard Time, and get off this crazy carousel once and for all…

Smoke, Mirrors, and Trumpery…

by MyBaconPress

The line between a conman and a salesman is SO vanishingly thin as to be nonexistent. I think I’m probably the first person in all of history to notice that, but I probably won’t get the credit I so richly deserve for my insightful brilliance.

I don’t mean any insult to salesmen, here, but salesman and conman aren’t different jobs. They’re different names for the same job. That’s why, when the left calls Trump a “grifting conman,” the right responds with “gifted salesman.” It’s simply a matter of point of view…

If a guy sells you an erector set so you can build little bridges in your living room, that person is a salesman. If a guy “sells” you the Golden Gate Bridge? That’s a conman. Trump is a conman. What he’s selling is pure smoke and mirrors with absolutely zero substance…

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It’s been kind of fun watching the Trumps disavow all knowledge of anything Trump.
Trump organization: “Oh, do I work there?”
Trump documents: “Huh, did I sign that?”
Trumps financials: “Oh, we rely on other people. We know nothing of business and just sign things where others tell us to sign.”
Trumps on GAAP: “Isn’t that a clothing store for the poors?”
Eric on his father: “Donald who? Never heard of the guy.”

Leave it to the Trumps. Like father, like son, they say, and it sure seems valid when it come to telling the truth. Or not, as the case may be. I’m not surprised they’re lying – it’s what Trumps do – but to step up and lie on the stand? Dumb times two (aka, “Classic Trump”).

Currently, they’re lying during the civil trial (as though that makes it okay) but there’s another person looking into the criminal aspects of the Trump Organization fraud, Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg. I suspect Letitia James is going to hand the transcript of her trial to Bragg and let him do his thing, pursuing criminal charges against the Trumps for their fraud in New York.

When you lie to true believers on Fox Not-News or sNewsmax or ONAN, you’re just lying and there are no consequences because your believers just love, love, love you. But when you lie on the stand in a courtroom under oath? Yeah, that’s called perjury and it’s a crime and it carries criminal punishments – and now the Trumps are just handing all of that to DA Bragg…

I’m starting to wonder how long it will be, now, before we see the Trumps jump on daddy’s plane and take off – permanently – for places unknown. (Actually, we know where Moscow is…)

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Well, leave it to lying conservatives to resort to cheating at every turn. The lie? Since the ruling in Roe v Wade, they’ve pretended they want abortion settled on a state-by-state basis. (That way, they can at least brutalize women in the red states.) The cheat? In Ohio, anyway, they purged 26,000 voters Republicans perceive will likely vote to support Issue 1, the measure codifying women’s reproductive rights into the state constitution, but didn’t announce the action soon enough for those voters to correct the crime. That’s 26,000 voters ACTUALLY disenfranchised by Republicans.

This isn’t the Republicans first effort, here, either. They held a special election last August – an unusual time for an election – that sought to make it more difficult to amend the state constitution by raising the requirement to 60% of voters instead of a simple majority. It’s a common Republican trick. Requiring a super-majority for nearly anything is antithetical to the American way.

We’re supposed to be a simple majority rules country but the Republicans KNOW they can’t win anything under those conditions, so they rig the game to make change nearly impossible. Had that dishonest effort succeeded, it would have been MUCH more difficult for Ohioans to pass Issue 1, which, of course, is the point.

And all of THIS is happening because Ohioans already voted in 2022 to make abortion legal in most cases. CLEARLY, the vast majority of Ohioans want reproductive control over their own bodies (and/or actions, in the case of the ever-anonymous, impregnating men).

My guess as next up for the lying, cheating Republicans? A FEDERAL ban on abortion – because the ‘state-by-state’ thing doesn’t seem to be working out nearly as well as they had hoped it would. Fortunately, they’ve had their exceptionally poor governing ability on full display recently and, hopefully, there’s not likely to be enough Republicans left in Congress to enact anything anytime soon…

Command and Control…

by MyBaconPress

This is pretty simple, actually. If you’re not at least 35 years of age, you can’t run for President. If you’re not a natural born citizen, you can’t run for President. If you engaged in insurrection after taking an oath of office to the United States and/or gave aid and comfort to insurrectionists, you can’t run for President.

I’ve argued in these pages that Trump has not (yet) been convicted of anything relating to his insurrection. Then I remembered: neither were the traitors it was written for. (Also conservatives. What a surprise.) It was enough that everybody knew what they had done. It should be enough that everybody (but a MAGA) knows what Trump did. (MAGA knows what he did, too. They just will never, ever admit it…)

Trump called them to the Capitol and they came.
Trump told them to “fight like hell” and they attacked.
Trump (finally) told them to go home and they went home.

I wish I had a dog that responded so well to commands.

“So go home. We love you. You’re very special.” Trump’s oh-so-comforting words to the assailants and only after hours of refusing to call them off (indicating that only he could call them off…)

Cases are moving forward in Colorado and Minnesota challenging Trump’s right to be on the ballot. If they win, other states will follow as quickly as possible. But in order to win, they have to get past the Roberts Supremely Kangaroo Criminal Court. The conservative majority doesn’t make rulings based on the law. They use their “feels” and I suspect they feel like they’d like to see Trump back in the Oval Office…

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Okay, so now Donny is out there telling his minions that we’re going to have a great country. “It’s going to be called the United States of America.” I’d like to think he was just trying to wax poetic but I suspect he thinks he came up with that great name – just like he’s the first, ever, to notice that a common abbreviation for our nation, U.S., also spells the word “us” if you take the little dots out.

This is the level of intelligence that impresses the crap out of his followers and that scares the crap out of me…

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HBO, no HBO Max, wait, Max (I hope they settle on something, soon) has a documentary right now called ‘The Insurrectionist Next Door.’ It was made by Alexandra Pelosi. If the name sounds familiar, it should. She’s Nancy’s daughter. It’s a little over an hour long. It’s worth every minute.

She focuses on a handful of people who participated in J6. They’ve been arrested and charged (that’s how she found them), some had been tried already and were awaiting sentencing. A couple still faced trial. She spoke with them before their sentencing and after they were released from jail. She put human faces to people who did some pretty terrible things.

A common thread from many of them was that they didn’t go intending to breach the Capitol. THEY thought they were going to go down and shout at the building from outside but when “somebody” – Proud Boys and Oath Keepers working for Trump – started going in, they followed along. When Pelosi asked them WHY they followed, they said they didn’t know, they just got caught up in the moment.

Mob mentality. I found myself thinking of ‘Lord of the Flies’ when the boys were chasing Piggy, intent on killing him. (Oh, yeah, spoiler alert.) When Piggy stumbled and fell at the feet of a British Navel Officer, they all, immediately, became little boys again, instantly responsive to perceived authority. Pretty stunning in the book. More so in real life. Even after prison, only ONE realized he’d been duped by Donny and reconsidered his loyalty.

One kid was even a little heartbreaking. When his interview started, he seemed like just a normal guy who lived with his sister. As the interview progress, it became clear he lives with his sister because he is mentally challenged and needs supervision. SHE, on the other hand, got caught up with the Proud Boys and knew exactly what she was doing. She tricked her brother into going to the rally with her. He just thought it was a spontaneous road trip that happened to end up in DC on J6. She took armor with her. Then she took him to the Capitol where he, too, got “caught up in the moment.” He ended up assaulting a police officer and now faces something like 36 years in prison.

The last thing he told Pelosi was that, no, he didn’t think the election was stolen and that he had voted for Biden. Overall, it was quite intriguing. I recommend ‘The Insurrectionist Next Door’ wholeheartedly. It’s worth (about an hour and fifteen minutes of) your time…

Gavin’s Position…

by MyBaconPress

It sure looks to me like Gavin Newsom is running for President. I mean, I can’t say for sure. He and I haven’t talked recently. And HE says, “Oh no, not me!” But, of course, he would. He’s a Democrat in good standing and he’s not going to rock the boat by running against Joe Biden. But he keeps…doing things. As the Governor of California (55 electoral votes), his profile is already pretty high.

But his high-profile spat with Ron DeSantis of Florida seemed mostly about increasing his name recognition on a national level AND hopefully being seen as a defender of the Florida common man (29 electoral votes). Then he’s off again, negotiating climate agreements with the Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, Winnie-the-Pooh. No, I’m sorry, it’s Xi Jinping, Chairman Xi. Bother. International relationships with high-profile world leaders? Check.

On the other hand, he has a legitimate role in climate negotiations and governors DO snipe amongst themselves from time to time. It COULD all be normal. Either way, he’s positioned for 2028, should America (or humanity, for that matter) survive until 2028. But by then, nobody will remember Newsom rubbing DeSantis’ nose in it and negotiating with Xi. So maybe he sees, or even knows, something the rest of us don’t. I’ll tell you what I see.

I think Democrats are making a HUGE mistake with their currently held position that ‘Well, Biden beat Trump once, he can do it again.’ I don’t really think Biden beat Trump. I mean, I’m no MAGA, I know Biden prevailed fair and square in a perfectly legitimate election. But people voted Biden in order to stop Trump. It could have been nearly anybody. (Nearly. A certain wife of a certain ex-President, it could NOT be. But anybody else…) The only criteria America used in 2020 was, “Who’s not Trump?”

But speaking of not Trump, what if the candidate isn’t Trump? There are two cases happening right now, trying to keep Trump off the ballot via the 14th Amendment. If they prevail, as they should, other states will follow as quickly as they can and Trump will be dropped from state after state. Trump might well be simply declared ineligible before the 2024 election. Or what if he’s in jail? I know the die-hardest of the die-hards will vote for him anyway, but I doubt you’ll find too many rational Americans, Republican OR Democrat, willing to cast their ballot for Inmate 1875150.

What if Trump is dead? I mean, he’s got a few years under his very large belt, too, and he doesn’t exercise. (Driving a golf cart from hole to hole doesn’t count.) He’s under tremendous stress, right now. He’s about to lose his daddy’s business and then go to prison. At his age, in his condition, that kind of pressure can just explode a person’s heart.

Also, and I hate to say this, for all of our bluster about how super-de-duper honest the voting machines are, I still don’t trust them and I never have. The reason I mention it is, thanks to Covid-19 (what happened to Covids 1 – 18?) people were pushed to use paper ballots. (Standard rant: ALL voters should ALWAYS use paper ballots. NONE of us can know, for sure, how dependable the machines are, but pen to paper has always been pretty dependable. Besides, you can vote in nothing but your underwear! Less, if you want to.)

I’ve long been struck by Trump’s claims that he got more votes. He didn’t, but he’s just sure he did. If it’s not just a gimmick, why would someone believe they had the most votes no matter what? The thought has crossed my mind that he thinks so because he knows he paid the money for the most votes. But when the voting was pushed to paper, manipulation of the machines was no longer possible. Yet another failed investment by Donald J. Trump. But in 2024, the machines are back!

Listen, I think Biden has done a pretty good job, so far. I know MAGA disagrees but they think they live in a Mad Max style, dystopian hell-hole and 45 is being framed so…no one’s best source of information. I suspect most thinking Americans agree with me. But people are very wary of his age. (It’s scary!) I know, Trump is old, too. Trust me, I don’t want HIM to be President, either. Biden acts old, which is okay, because he IS old. But he’ll be 82 during next year’s campaign. Mitch McConnell is 81 right now and he keeps taking little mental vacations to the Bahamas right in the middle of sentences. I’m not making fun. These are the slings and arrows of age. But that’s the point: age. At 81.

I know the cons like to pretend Biden is in full-fledged Alzheimer’s and walking into walls but he isn’t and he doesn’t. Yet. Maybe never. It’s not automatic. But the likelihood increases with every year and a person can start suffering symptoms before others even become aware. I even know the country can function should the worst happen. We had a President with full blown Alzheimer’s in Ronald Reagan. The people around him (the deep state) took care of him and got things done. But can we agree, it wasn’t optimal?

So maybe Gavin positioning himself now isn’t such a poor idea. He only has until December 15 to register his candidacy, though, so, we’ll know soon…

Welcome Back MAGA…

by MyBaconPress

Federal courts don’t usually allow cameras. I suspect that’s part of the reason so many of Donny’s co-conspirators, along with Donny himself, tried to get their state case in Georgia moved up to Federal courts. It’s MUCH easier to lie about what happened in a courtroom – Donny does it every day as he leaves the courtroom in New York – if the world has to rely on second hand reports and, obviously, MAGA gonna lie. But if there are cameras in the room, with a live stream of the process (which MAGA will avoid at all costs), it will be easier to rebut fraudulent claims by lying conservative media in real time.

Several media outlets are formally requesting a waiver to the rule against cameras in the Federal courtroom. Their position? “If ever a trial were to be televised, this one should be, for the benefit of American democracy.” Interestingly, the judge hasn’t dismissed the request outright. Donny’s team has been given the opportunity to argue against the idea, suggesting that the court is open to cameras in this case.

There’s an Act out there that says that victims in Federal crimes have the right to watch the trial of the accused in their case. As it happens, every American who voted is a victim of Donny’s deceptions. I’m going out on a limb, here, but I suspect “every American who voted” won’t fit into the courtroom. Cameras are the ONLY reasonable solution.

I’ll tell you this: I hope cameras are allowed. I’ll whip up some popcorn and, if anyone needs me, you’ll find me glued to the set, watching every moment…

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I read this sentence in this morning’s Guardian, in an article by Peter Pomerantsev called, ‘We Can’t Fight The Republican Party’s ‘Big Lie’ with Facts Alone.’ I wish I had written it.
“Agreeing to Trump’s claims about the rigged election is the absurdity you have to pledge allegiance to in order to show you belong to the tribe. It ensures your fealty by making you complicit. For anyone who has lived in authoritarian regimes, it’s a familiar sight.”

I’ve been thinking more seriously about the danger MAGA represents to what’s left of this nation. They are the least educated among the American people. Much of the world just laughs at their antics and lack of understanding about even the most basic things. They are bitter, blaming the world for their own failures. They are pissed off! Basically, we dismiss them for the wool-headed buffoons they are, and they ARE…but they’re also dangerous. These people are blind loyalists. Their leader is on his way to jail. They dismiss evidence against him and maintain their loyalty. One cannot reason with people who didn’t reach their position through reason. There’s a scary historical corollary, here: 1930’s Germany.

“Oh, God, he’s not invoking the Nazis, is he?”
“Yeah, I think he is.”
“Doesn’t he know Godwin’s Law? The first person to mention the Nazis loses?”
“Well, that’s not what Godwin said, so no.”

Okay, so, look. In the early 1930’s the Nazis started to come together in Germany. They were the least educated among the German people. Much of the world just laughed at their antics and lack of understanding about even the most basic things. They were bitter, blaming the world for their own failures. They were pissed off! Basically, the world dismissed them for the wool-headed buffoons they were (and still are). But they were also dangerous. Those people were blind loyalists, too. Their leader even went to jail. They dismissed evidence against him and maintained their loyalty. Sound familiar?

Then, the Nazi’s somehow ascended to power, anyway, and 40-50 million people died.

The people attracted to the Nazis, originally, seem to have been attracted by the feeling of acceptance, like they’d found a home. They were minimally marginalized people who found a community within the party. But then, to STAY in the good graces of the party, one had to toe the party line perfectly. Even the slightest slip and you’re OUT! Likely, ALL the way out, if you know what I mean.

I suspect MAGA is the same – minimally marginalized people who found a community within MAGA. But then, to STAY in the good graces of MAGA, one has to toe the MAGA line perfectly. Even the slightest slip and you’re RINO and you’re OUT! Trying to help a MAGA back to reality with facts and/or evidence alone simply doesn’t work, primarily because in stepping back into the real world, they have to step out of their community. They have to surrender their feeling of belonging to something. Imagine trying to talk a fundamentalist Christian out of their fundamentalist church. Imagine trying to talk one of “Manson’s Children” out of Charlie Manson’s cult. Same result, same reason. They lose their community.

I’ve never been much of a joiner but I DO know the feeling. When I was in basic training, I noticed that all the “slick sleeves” (trainees, aka: me) could talk to each other easily and comfortably because we were ALL in the same boat. Who came from where didn’t much matter. TODAY we’re all “recruits” and nothing more. Community.

I suspect we can only help someone back to reality by making sure they know there’s a place for them with a new community, a better community. A community where you don’t have to toe a specific line or repeat a ridiculous mantra to prove yourself. Hopefully, a community that promotes one’s BEST self and doesn’t prey on people’s worst instincts.

So I recommend maintaining communication with the MAGAs in your world. It’s not easy, but it’s worthwhile. Turning your back on your local, perhaps familial, MAGA only serves to marginalize them more, pressing them harder and harder into their destructive MAGA “community.” Remember, while we’re laughing at their antics, they’re slowly gaining power. Ascending, as Matt Gaetz says.

Back in the 30’s, the Nazis had a more difficult time spreading their message but they still had an advantage: people simply could not believe (or accept) what they were seeing from that group. Today, MAGA spreads their word easily through the internet and a gaggle of MAGA podcasts supporting the fraud. But today? The world knows what it looks like when their kind of message spreads too far and too successfully. In short, we’ve been warned by history. Do we learn? Can we?

I’ll tell you this: if we can’t offer them a welcome into a more uplifting community, they’re going to stay where they are no matter what is asked of them. In the 40’s, 50 million people died trying to squelch the Nazis. Today, we have FAR better weapons. The deaths have already started. If we don’t find a way to stop this process, how many will die? And I suspect community is the best answer…

Gaetz LOVES Johnson…

by MyBaconPress

Matt Gaetz loves Mike Johnson because of how much Mike Johnson hates America. Gaetz thinks the election of Johnson to Speaker of the House is a brilliant moment in which MAGA takes control and now? Hoo, boy, you just watch who MAGA can hurt going forward! Gaetz called Johnson a “Godly man,” but wouldn’t know a Godly man if he was talking to, well, God.

Gaetz blames the confusion in the House on Kevin McCarthy. It’s all Kevin’s fault. Kevin was working behind the scenes to sabotage the process. Kevin has been relegated to RINO status since he (gasp!) worked with Democrats to (horror of horrors) pass legislation. Gaetz knows how wrong that was and he assures the base that Johnson won’t work with anybody to get anything done. And THAT’S how he’ll get things done. Period!

Personally, I doubt anything will get done. Anything at all. Well, except damage. If MAGA convinces moderate Republicans to vote with them on some crazy bit, the Democrats will stand, uniformly, opposed. Little to nothing will get out of the House. NONE of the MAGA hate-fest will get past the Senate. The downside is that nothing GOOD will get out of the House, either.

The up side? MAGA on full display. They will no longer be able to snipe from the shadows, pointing their fingers at anybody, everybody else. They’re up front for all to see. When America’s credit rating is downgraded – again – because cons don’t fully understand the process – still – and will play games with the debt ceiling – again – there won’t be anybody to point at and blame but themselves. Oh, they’ll DO it. They do not take personal responsibility for anything. But everyone will know it was them. And I’ll be here to remind anyone who forgets.

All I knew about Johnson on Wednesday was that he was one of the traitors. Now I know he’s a hate-filled, extremist traitor. He thinks people should adhere to 18th century values. He presents himself as a super-Christian but violates the 10 commandments every time he talks MAGA. He has, in the past, blamed mass shootings on “no fault divorce laws,” “the sexual revolution,” “radical feminism,” and “government sanctioned killing of the unborn.” Nothing about arming crazy people with high powered rifles designed for urban combat. Apparently, Jesus is a-okay with that..

His answer on LGBT+ issues? “Go pick up a Bible…” There’s ALWAYS an unspoken part to that particular advice: “…and ignore the parts you don’t like.” That unspoken part is VERY important to pseudo super Christians. Sure, he’ll hate gays because Leviticus says you should but he’ll tell you about his hatred over a lobster dinner because Leviticus “didn’t mean it” about shellfish.

I wonder if he supports multiple wives (whom the man owns, of course) and wives acquired by rape? BOTH ideas are exemplified in the Bible as perfectly normal. Sometimes, under certain conditions, you can even KILL the bitch and still be viewed as an “honorable man!” Yet, he only has one wife (that we know of). I assume he’s into slavery, as well. That, too, is endorsed in the Bible. God even set the price! Those are all well-known, 18th century values.

He thinks abortion providers should be sentenced to 1 – 10 years of “hard labor.” No word on forcing the man to take responsibility for HIS actions in the pregnancy and certainly nothing about preventing abortion through early childhood education and readily available birth control. Apparently, using the brain God gave us is a sin. Yeah, that makes sense.

You know what? The version of the Bible I’ve read has a lot of ‘help the poor,’ ‘feed the hungry,’ ‘clothe the naked,’ and ‘visit the sick’ but none of that ever makes it into their pseudo-christian ideology. The Christianity-making part of the Bible, the New Testament, (you know…the teachings of Jesus) says to sell off ALL of your possessions and give the money to the poor. THEN you can get into Heaven. I never see any of that in their oh-so-on-display christian pretense and his suits suggest he may be hoarding money, not giving it all away.

So there you go; my take on our new Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson. He doesn’t believe in the Constitution and he cherry-picks the Bible verses that form his opinions on morality. His goal is to punish people who don’t think like he does and he’s MAGA crazy. It’s going to be quite a ride with him for the next year or so but I’ll tell you this: MAGA isn’t just crazy, it’s dangerous and if we, the people, don’t find a way to sideline them – and fast – this country will have to go through hell to rid ourselves of them later…

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