Has U.S. Democracy Been Trumped?

[Chas_P]

No integrity, no dignity, no honor, cannot control himself from continuing to post to this thread and repeatedly demonstrating that he has the same lack of self control of his hero Dennison.

 

As a sidenote, in the world of pro wrestling, when a wrestler has been suspended, fired, quit, banished in a kayfabe storeyline, that wrestler will sometimes make an immediate return to action wearing a mask. Since he (she) has the same build, the same voice, the same skillset, it's not too hard to figure out that the new masked wrestler is the same guy that was previously banned from the ring. Now, almost everybody know this is the same guy, the crowd, the hot dog vendors, sometimes the opponent. The only people who don't "know" this are on the wrestling company payroll, the ring announcer, the referee, the TV commentators, the general manager and/or president of the company. It all comes down to plausible deniability.

 

Instead of wearing a mask, all Chas_NoDignity_NoSelfRespect has to do is change to a new screen name. I have been including many possible names in my posts. Nobody will know for sure that the new poster is not Chas_P. I will have my suspicions but I won't know with 100% certainty that this is Chas_P continuing to be a weasel and a man without honor. Nobody will know for sure except for Chas_P.

 

Thank you for your input Johnboy. You really are a mental heavyweight. I stand in awe of your magnificence.

[johnu]

 

Lacks the self awareness to be aware that he destroyed any dignity and honor he may have had

[Zelandakh]

Put me on ignore if you don't care to read what I write. :rolleyes:

 

In case you really want to know, you can go back several dozen pages and read the posts.

The essential gist of your argument seems to be that as Chas once posted that he was leaving, that should be binding and coming back in some way shows shame and a lack of integrity. Aside from the tenuous link in the basic argument, one has to wonder about the many other posters that have publicly left the forums and returned. Probably the strongest player still posting here has left BBF on multiple occasions. Do you feel that Mike shows a lack of integrity by posting here again? I would hope not.

 

So what singles Chas out in this regard besides his politics? I agree absolutely that he sometimes deliberately trolls. Not as badly as some other conservatives that have taken up residence here but enough to open himself up to being essentially pathetic. But a lack of integrity for not following through on an intention to stop posting? Come on man. Your rant after all this time says far more about you than about him.

[johnu]

The essential gist of your argument seems to be that as Chas once posted that he was leaving, that should be binding and coming back in some way shows shame and a lack of integrity. Aside from the tenuous link in the basic argument, one has to wonder about the many other posters that have publicly left the forums and returned. Probably the strongest player still posting here has left BBF on multiple occasions. Do you feel that Mike shows a lack of integrity by posting here again? I would hope not.

 

You are hopelessly wrong about your understanding of the situation. Chas_Troll has acknowledged that trolling (as you acknowledge in your post) is one of his goals and was posting ridiculous and easily fact checked lies and was getting his hat handed to him by other posters. He had several moments of clarity and realized how embarrassing it was to continue to spout nonsense and lose whatever respect he had left. So, in a sign of maturity :rolleyes: he dramatically announced he was giving up posting (his talking points from right fringe media) and was going to leave this thread (at least a couple of times that I saw). I'm just trying to help him keep an iota of dignity by reminding him of his pledge to stop posting. B-)

 

I don't keep track of mikeh's participation. I guess he stops posting at times because of lack of time, or maybe some temporary disinterest with bridge, whatever. If his circumstances change, why would I care why he changed his mind?

 

So what singles Chas out in this regard besides his politics? I agree absolutely that he sometimes deliberately trolls. Not as badly as some other conservatives that have taken up residence here but enough to open himself up to being essentially pathetic. But a lack of integrity for not following through on an intention to stop posting? Come on man. Your rant after all this time says far more about you than about him.

 

If you think I'm ranting, feel free to put me on ignore.

 

I'm just trying to help Chas be the best man he can be by getting him to show some integrity and honor his word. Nothing more, nothing less. B-)

[jjbrr]

Republican Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert was indicted on federal charges of structuring bank withdrawals after prosecutors alleged Hastert had molested at least four boys as young as 14 and attempted to compensate his victims and subsequently conceal the transactions. Hastert eventually admitted that he sexually abused the boys whom he had coached decades earlier, and was sentenced to fifteen months in prison.

 

Republican Tim Nolan, chairman of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign in Kentucky, pled guilty to child sex trafficking and on February 11, 2018 he was sentenced to serve 20 years in prison.

 

Republican state Senator Ralph Shortey was indicted on four counts of human trafficking and child pornography. In November 2017, he pleaded guilty to one count of child sex trafficking in exchange for the dropping of the other charges.

 

Republican anti-abortion activist Howard Scott Heldreth is a convicted child rapist in Florida.

 

Republican County Commissioner David Swartz pleaded guilty to molesting two girls under the age of 11 and was sentenced to 8 years in prison.

 

Republican judge Mark Pazuhanich pleaded no contest to fondling a 10-year old girl and was sentenced to 10 years probation.

 

Republican anti-abortion activist Nicholas Morency pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography on his computer and offering a bounty to anybody who murders an abortion doctor.

 

Republican legislator Edison Misla Aldarondo was sentenced to 10 years in prison for raping his daughter between the ages of 9 and 17.

 

Republican Mayor Philip Giordano is serving a 37-year sentence in federal prison for sexually abusing 8- and 10-year old girls.

 

Republican campaign consultant Tom Shortridge was sentenced to three years probation for taking nude photographs of a 15-year old girl.

 

Republican Senator Strom Thurmond, a notable racist, had sex with a 15-year old black girl which produced a child.

 

Republican pastor Mike Hintz, whom George W. Bush commended during the 2004 presidential campaign, surrendered to police after admitting to a sexual affair with a female juvenile.

 

Republican legislator Peter Dibble pleaded no contest to having an inappropriate relationship with a 13-year-old girl.

 

Republican Congressman Donald “Buz” Lukens was found guilty of having sex with a female minor and sentenced to one month in jail.

 

Republican fundraiser Richard A. Delgaudio was found guilty of child porn charges and paying two teenage girls to pose for sexual photos.

 

Republican activist Mark A. Grethen convicted on six counts of sex crimes involving children.

 

Republican activist Randal David Ankeney pleaded guilty to attempted sexual assault on a child.

 

Republican Congressman Dan Crane had sex with a female minor working as a congressional page.

 

Republican activist and Christian Coalition leader Beverly Russell admitted to an incestuous relationship with his step daughter.

 

Republican congressman and anti-gay activist Robert Bauman was charged with having sex with a 16-year-old boy he picked up at a gay bar.

 

Republican Committee Chairman Jeffrey Patti was arrested for distributing a video clip of a 5-year-old girl being raped.

 

Republican activist Marty Glickman (a.k.a. “Republican Marty”), was taken into custody by Florida police on four counts of unlawful sexual activity with an underage girl and one count of delivering the drug LSD.

 

Republican legislative aide Howard L. Brooks was charged with molesting a 12-year old boy and possession of child pornography.

 

Republican Senate candidate John Hathaway was accused of having sex with his 12-year old baby sitter and withdrew his candidacy after the allegations were reported in the media.

 

Republican preacher Stephen White, who demanded a return to traditional values, was sentenced to jail after offering $20 to a 14-year-old boy for permission to perform oral sex on him.

 

Republican talk show host Jon Matthews pleaded guilty to exposing his genitals to an 11 year old girl.

 

Republican anti-gay activist Earl “Butch” Kimmerling was sentenced to 40 years in prison for molesting an 8-year old girl after he attempted to stop a gay couple from adopting her.

 

Republican Party leader Paul Ingram pleaded guilty to six counts of raping his daughters and served 14 years in federal prison.

 

Republican election board official Kevin Coan was sentenced to two years probation for soliciting sex over the internet from a 14-year old girl.

 

Republican politician Andrew Buhr was charged with two counts of first degree sodomy with a 13-year old boy.

 

Republican politician Keith Westmoreland was arrested on seven felony counts of lewd and lascivious exhibition to girls under the age of 16 (i.e. exposing himself to children).

 

Republican anti-abortion activist John Allen Burt was charged with sexual misconduct involving a 15-year old girl.

 

Republican County Councilman Keola Childs pleaded guilty to molesting a male child.

 

Republican activist John Butler was charged with criminal sexual assault on a teenage girl.

 

Republican candidate Richard Gardner admitted to molesting his two daughters.

 

Republican Councilman and former Marine Jack W. Gardner was convicted of molesting a 13-year old girl.

 

Republican County Commissioner Merrill Robert Barter pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual contact and assault on a teenage boy.

 

Republican City Councilman Fred C. Smeltzer, Jr. pleaded no contest to raping a 15 year-old girl and served 6-months in prison.

 

Republican activist Parker J. Bena pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography on his home computer and was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison and fined $18,000.

 

Republican parole board officer and former Colorado state representative, Larry Jack Schwarz, was fired after child pornography was found in his possession.

 

Republican strategist and Citadel Military College graduate Robin Vanderwall was convicted in Virginia on five counts of soliciting sex from boys and girls over the internet.

 

Republican city councilman Mark Harris, who is described as a “good military man” and “church goer,” was convicted of repeatedly having sex with an 11-year-old girl and sentenced to 12 years in prison.

 

Republican businessman Jon Grunseth withdrew his candidacy for Minnesota governor after allegations surfaced that he went swimming in the nude with four underage girls, including his daughter.

 

Republican director of the “Young Republican Federation” Nicholas Elizondo molested his 6-year old daughter and was sentenced to six years in prison.

 

Republican benefactor of conservative Christian groups, Richard A. Dasen Sr., was charged with rape for allegedly paying a 15-year old girl for sex. Dasen, 62, who is married with grown children and several grandchildren, has allegedly told police that over the past decade he paid more than $1 million to have sex with a large number of young women.

[hrothgar]

I am leery about trying to make sweeping arguments that party X or party Y has a pervasive history of sexually abusing children.

 

It's far too easy to cherry pick examples.

 

However, I would like to see much more active prosecution for these types of offensives and I would like to see some of the individuals involved end up in gen pop.

[kenberg]

I'm just trying to help Chas be the best man he can be by getting him to show some integrity and honor his word. Nothing more, nothing less. B-)

 

Ah yes, helping the misguided to find the way. Sister Sarah from Guys and Dolls comes to mind. We sinners must seek the path to salvation. Maybe tomorrow, I have a full schedule for today.

 

I drift off from the WC from time to time. It is in some ways interesting, in other ways frustrating, I sometimes think that going for a long walk would be much better for me and probably more fun. Perhaps we should just accept that people will bounce back and forth on this.

 

And yes, I do realize I can ignore you if I wish. I often ignore posts, and newspaper articles, and a number of other things, but I don't think that I have clicked ignore for anyone.

 

 

 

[jjbrr]

I am leery about trying to make sweeping arguments that party X or party Y has a pervasive history of sexually abusing children.

 

It's far too easy to cherry pick examples.

 

However, I would like to see much more active prosecution for these types of offensives and I would like to see some of the individuals involved end up in gen pop.

 

I agree.

 

 

Democratic donor and billionaire, Jeffrey Epstein, ran an underage child sex brothel and was convicted of soliciting underage girls for prostitution.

Democratic New York Congressman, Anthony Weiner, plead guilty to transferring obscene material to a minor as part of a plea agreement for sexted and sending Twitter DMs to underage girls as young as 15.

Democratic donor, activist, and Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein is being criminally prosecuted and civilly sued for years of sexual abuse (that was well known “secret” in Hollywood) including underage sexual activities with aspiring female actresses.

Democratic activist and #metoo proponent, Asia Argento, settled a lawsuit for sexual harassment stemming from sexual activities with an underage actor.

Democratic Mayor of Racine, Wisconsin, Gary Becker, was convicted of attempted child seduction, child pornography, and other child sex crimes.

Democratic Seattle Mayor Ed Murray resigned after multiple accusations of child sexual abuse were levied against him including by family members.

Democratic activist and aid to NYC Mayor De Blasio, Jacob Schwartz was arrested on possession of 3,000+ child pornographic images.

Democratic activist and actor, Russell Simmons, was sued based on an allegation of sexual assault where he coerced an underage model for sex.

Democratic Governor of Oregon, Neil Goldschmidt, after being caught by a newspaper, publicly admitted to having a past sexual relationship with a 13-year-old girl after the statute of limitations on the rape charges had expired.

Democratic Illinois Congressman, Mel Reynolds resigned from Congress after he was convicted of statutory rape of a 16-year-old campaign volunteer.

Democratic New York Congressman, Fred Richmond, was arrested in Washington D.C. for soliciting sex from a 16-year-old boy.

Democratic activist, donor, and director, Roman Polanski, fled the country after pleading guilty to statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl. Democrats and Hollywood actors still defend him to this day, including, Whoopi Goldberg, Martin Scorcese, Woody Allen, David Lynch, Wim Wenders, Pedro Almodovar, Tilda Swinton and Monica Bellucci.

Democratic State Senator from Alaska, George Jacko, was found guilty of sexual harassment of an underage legislative page.

Democratic State Representative candidate for Colorado, Andrew Myers, was convicted for possession of child pornography and enticing children.

Democratic Illinois Congressman, Gus Savage was investigated by the Democrat-controlled House Committee on Ethics for attempting to rape an underage female Peace Corps volunteer in Zaire. The Committee concluded that while the events did occur his apology was sufficient and took no further action.

Democratic activist, donor, and spokesperson for Subway, Jared Fogle, was convicted of distribution and receipt of child pornography and traveling to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor.

Democratic State Department official, Carl Carey, under Hillary Clinton’s state department, was arrested on ten counts of child porn possession.

Democratic Maine Assistant Attorney General, James Cameron, was sentenced to just over 15 years in federal prison for seven counts of child porn possession, receipt and transmission.

Democratic State Department official, Daniel Rosen, under Hillary Clinton’s state department, was arrested and charged with allegedly soliciting sex from a minor over the internet.

Democratic State Department official, James Cafferty, pleaded guilty to one count of transportation of child pornography.

Democratic radio host, Bernie Ward, plead guilty to one count of sending child pornography over the Internet.

Democratic deputy attorney general from California, Raymond Liddy, was arrested for possession of child pornography.

Democratic Illinois State Representative, Keith Farnham, has resigned and was charged with possession of child pornography and has been accused of bragging at an online site about sexually molesting a 6-year-old girl.

Democratic spokesperson for the Arkansas Democratic Party, Harold Moody, Jr, was charged with distribution and possession of child pornography.

Democratic Radnor Township Board of Commissioners member, Philip Ahr, resigned from his position after being charged with possession of child pornography and abusing children between 2 and 6 years-old.

Democratic activist and BLM organizer, Charles Wade, was arrested and charged with human trafficking and underage prostitution.

Democratic Texas attorney and activist, Mark Benavides, was charged with having sex with a minor, inducing a child under 18 to have sex and compelling prostitution of at least nine legal clients and possession of child pornography. He was found guilty on six counts of sex trafficking.

Democratic Virginia Delegate, Joe Morrissey, was indicted on charges connected to his relationship with a 17-year-old girl and was charged with supervisory indecent liberties with a minor, electronic solicitation of a minor, possession of child pornography and distribution of child pornography.

Democratic Massachusetts Congressman, Gerry Studds, was censured by the House of Representatives after he admitted to an inappropriate relationship with a 17-year-old page.

Democratic Former Mayor of Stillwater, New York, Rick Nelson was plead guilty to five counts of possession of child pornography of children less than 16 years of age.

Democratic Former Mayor of Clayton, New York, Dale Kenyon, was indicted for sexual acts against a teenager.

Democratic Former Mayor of Hubbard, Ohio, Richard Keenan, was given a life sentence in jail for raping a 4-year-old girl.

Democratic Former Mayor of Winston, Oregeon, Kenneth Barrett, was arrested for setting up a meeting to have sex with a 14-year-old girl who turned out to be a police officer.

Democratic Former Mayor of Randolph, Nebraska, Dwayne L. Schutt, was arrested and charged with four counts of felony third-degree sexual assault of a child and one count of intentional child abuse.

Democratic Former Mayor of Dawson, Georgia, Christopher Wright, was indicted on the charges of aggravated child molestation, aggravated sodomy, rape, child molestation and statutory rape of an 11-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl.

Democratic Former Mayor of Stockton, California, Anthony Silva, was charged with providing alcohol to young adults during a game of strip poker that included a 16-year-old boy at a camp for underprivileged children run by the mayor.

Democratic Former Mayor of Millbrook, New York, Donald Briggs, was arrested and charged with inappropriate sexual contact with a person younger than 17.

Democratic party leader for Victoria County, Texas, Stephen Jabbour, plead guilty to possession and receiving over half a million child pornographic images.

Democratic activist and fundraiser, Terrence Bean, was arrested on charges of sodomy and sex abuse in a case involving a 15-year-old boy and when the alleged victim declined to testify, and the judge dismissed the case.

Democratic Party Chairman for Davidson County, Tennessee, Rodney Mullin, resigned amid child pornography allegations.

Democratic activist, Andrew Douglas Reed, pleaded guilty to a multiple counts of 2nd-degree sexual exploitation of a minor for producing child pornography.

Democratic official from Terre Haute, Indiana, David Roberts was sentenced to federal prison for producing and possessing child pornography including placing hidden cameras in the bedrooms and bathrooms at a home he shared with two minor female victims.

Democratic California Congressman, Tony Cárdenas, is being sued in LA County for allegedly sexually abused a 16-year-old girl.

Democratic aide to Senator Barbara Boxer, Jeff Rosato, plead guilty to charges of trading in child pornography.

Democratic Alaskan State Representative, Dean Westlake, resigned from his seat after the media published a report alleging he fathered a child with a 16-year-old girl when he was 28.

Democratic New Jersey State Assemblyman, Neil Cohen, was convicted of possession and distribution of child pornography.

[Winstonm]

Individual-1 plans to ignore the SCOTUS and make an end-run around the balance of powers of the constitution to place an anti-person-of-color question on the census - all with the help of AG Barr.

 

Hello? Nancy Pelosi? Are you there? Are you awake? This is a two-for-one sale chance. Start the damn impeachment inquiry and give the House the bite it needs to actually get answers.

[barmar]

I'm just trying to help Chas be the best man he can be by getting him to show some integrity and honor his word. Nothing more, nothing less. B-)

You're falling into the classic troll trap.

 

The whole point of trolling is to get attention and trigger angry responses. They're not interested in participating in a reasonable debate. The only way to combat them is to ignore them.

 

I admit that it's really hard to do that. There's always a small glimmer of hope that if you make just the right argument, they'll understand and admit that you're right, or at least go away defeated. But it's like the Chinese finger trap -- the more you fight, the more it encourages them.

 

It's like a parent ignoring a child who's throwing a temper tantrum.

[y66]

You're falling into the classic troll trap.

 

The whole point of trolling is to get attention and trigger angry responses. They're not interested in participating in a reasonable debate. The only way to combat them is to ignore them.

 

I admit that it's really hard to do that. There's always a small glimmer of hope that if you make just the right argument, they'll understand and admit that you're right, or at least go away defeated. But it's like the Chinese finger trap -- the more you fight, the more it encourages them.

 

It's like a parent ignoring a child who's throwing a temper tantrum.

It's almost always futile to reason with a kid once they reach the meltdown phase. A trick I learned recently is to say "I'm going in the other room now." It works for tantrums. Not sure if it works for trolls.

[Zelandakh]

It's almost always futile to reason with a kid once they reach the meltdown phase. A trick I learned recently is to say "I'm going in the other room now." It works for tantrums. Not sure if it works for trolls.

What works best for trolls is to lock the front door with them standing on the outside of it. But it is always difficult to define the line precisely where the trolling is serious enough to warrant that and many forum moderation teams abdicate their responsibility tot heir communities by refusing to make any decisions at all in this area.

 

At the end of the day, it is what it is. You choose to be a part of the community or not. One of the great things about the internet is that there is always an alternative community available. Breaking up communities in this way is in the end a success for the trolls. Thinking about the posters that BBF has lost since the trolls turned up here, it is difficult to escape the idea that there might be a link.

[kenberg]

I see that there have been 13,137 posts in this thread. Maybe a record for longevity. It might well be dying.

 

For myself, this has little to do with any trolling, real or alleged. I more eagerly turn to some people's posts than others, but that's only natural.

[johnu]

...

 

Nobody is disputing that there are bad people doing very bad things on both ends of the spectrum. What's ironic is that the (right fringe) Republicans constantly and consistently wrap themselves in the arms of god and make the unholy proclamation that they are the keepers of religion and the voice of moral authority.

 

This goes back farther than the "moral" majority, and now the evangelical right supports the Republicans by an overwhelming majority. Why they support Dennison is beyond me. He's as genuinely religious as most facist dictators from the past which is to say almost as religious as an atheist.

 

DID TRUMP FIND RELIGION? DON’T HOLD YOUR BREATH

 

When asked about his favorite Bible verses, Trump says he does “not want to get into specifics” and then whiffs on the follow-up question on whether he is more of an “Old Testament guy or a New Testament guy.”

 

Trump thinks for a second and answers: “Probably equal, I think. It just an incredible…the whole Bible is an incredible…” and then starts talking about how he jokes that his own book The Art of the Deal is only his second favorite book.

IMO, when somebody claims the moral high ground and religious authority, they set themselves up to be judged by a higher set of standards than the average person.

[Winstonm]

I see the stable genius has folded his losing census hand and he is now skulking away. I suspect he got the message (from Pelosi, probably, by way of Barr) that if he tried to bypass the constitution he really would get impeached.

[Winstonm]

The case for an inquiry to determine is impeachable offenses have occurred:

 

The convention adopted “high crimes and misdemeanors” with little discussion. Most of the framers knew the phrase well. Since 1386, the English parliament had used “high crimes and misdemeanors” as one of the grounds to impeach officials of the crown. Officials accused of “high crimes and misdemeanors” were accused of offenses as varied as misappropriating government funds, appointing unfit subordinates, not prosecuting cases, not spending money allocated by Parliament, promoting themselves ahead of more deserving candidates, threatening a grand jury, disobeying an order from Parliament, arresting a man to keep him from running for Parliament, losing a ship by neglecting to moor it, helping “suppress petitions to the King to call a Parliament,” granting warrants without cause, and bribery. Some of these charges were crimes. Others were not. The one common denominator in all these accusations was that the official had somehow abused the power of his office and was unfit to serve.

my emphasis

 

https://www.crf-usa.org/impeachment/high-crimes-and-misdemeanors.html

[y66]

I see the stable genius has folded his losing census hand and he is now skulking away.

+1 for "skulking away" which is reminiscent of Anthony Wood in Athenae Oxonienses: "He was..forced to..creep and sculk into every place for fear of being taken and hanged".

[jjbrr]

Nobody is disputing that there are bad people doing very bad things on both ends of the spectrum. What's ironic is that the (right fringe) Republicans constantly and consistently wrap themselves in the arms of god and make the unholy proclamation that they are the keepers of religion and the voice of moral authority.

 

This goes back farther than the "moral" majority, and now the evangelical right supports the Republicans by an overwhelming majority. Why they support Dennison is beyond me. He's as genuinely religious as most facist dictators from the past which is to say almost as religious as an atheist.

 

DID TRUMP FIND RELIGION? DON’T HOLD YOUR BREATH

 

 

IMO, when somebody claims the moral high ground and religious authority, they set themselves up to be judged by a higher set of standards than the average person.

 

*shrug*

 

Exodus 22:21 “You shall not wrong or oppress a resident alien; for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.”

 

Deuteronomy 24:14-15 You shall not oppress a hired worker who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your brothers or a foreigner residing in your cities. You will pay his wages on that day, before the sun sets (for he is poor and needs the money), lest he cry out against you to the Lord, and you are guilty of sin.

 

Deuteronomy 1:16 Give the members of your community a fair hearing, and judge rightly between one person and another, whether citizen or resident alien.

 

Leviticus 19:34 The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the foreigner as yourself, for you were foreign in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.

 

Leviticus 25:35 If any of your people become poor and unable to support themselves among you, help them as you would a foreigner or stranger, so they may continue to live among you.

 

Leviticus Deuteronomy 27:19 Cursed is anyone who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow.

 

Zechariah 7:9-11 This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’

 

Jeremiah 22:3 Thus says the Lord: Do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place.

 

Malachi 3:5-6 "I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers, and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners among you of justice, but do not fear me,” says the Lord Almighty.

 

Ezekiel 47:22 You shall allot it as an inheritance for yourselves and for the foreigners who reside among you and have begotten children among you. They shall be to you as citizens of Israel; with you they shall be allotted an inheritance among the tribes of Israel.

 

Job 29:15-17 I was eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame. I was a father to the needy, and I championed the cause of the stranger. I broke the fangs of the unrighteous, and made them drop their prey from their teeth.

 

Matthew 25:35 I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.

[barmar]

I guess we know which are probably his least favorite.

 

He's probably a fan of the one about overturning the tables of the money changers, except for Deutsche Bank.

[y66]

From Jamie Condliffe at NYT:

 

Are we thinking about 5G all wrong?

 

Stop me if you’ve heard this before: We’re losing the 5G race to China, Huawei’s dominance in the technology around the globe is a threat to national security, and we had better clamp down on it.

 

But Tom Wheeler, a former chairman of the Federal Communications Commission and now a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution, explained that things were more nuanced. It’s a wide-ranging (often technical) analysis of the broader 5G policy landscape, and it’s worth a read if you have the time.

 

I chatted with him about it, and here are a few of his points about the China situation that I thought were interesting:

 

■ Coming first may not be important. President Trump has said that “the race to 5G is a race that we must win,” but it’s not clear what that means. What might winning look like? “The U.S. wasn’t first in any of the Gs, and yet it’s the dominant force in the wireless ecosystems,” Mr. Wheeler said. “I believe that winning is dominance over the things that use the network,” he added, as opposed to simply having the network in place first.

 

■ Railing against Huawei could undermine the United States’ dominance. The Trump administration has been trying to cut off Huawei from American tech, most recently by blocking American companies from selling to it. (That has softened a little, but the effect is unclear.) “My concern is that these trade policies are forcing the Chinese to develop their own alternatives” to United States technology, Mr. Wheeler said. The danger: that the resulting products and services are not just good but made widely available, and cheaply, too. “That will have an impact on our ability to lead,” Mr. Wheeler said.

 

■ So, now what? “There is a need for a policy strategy,” Mr. Wheeler said. “We’ve got to define winning, and then do it!”

Policy strategy in the Trump administration? It could happen. Ha ha ha.

[johnu]

I see the stable genius has folded his losing census hand and he is now skulking away. I suspect he got the message (from Pelosi, probably, by way of Barr) that if he tried to bypass the constitution he really would get impeached.

 

Democrats in Congress need to monitor the printing of the census forms very carefully. Would it surprise anybody if some unknown persons in the process "accidentally" included the citizenship question in the printings of some of the census forms destined for areas where there are a known large number of non-citizens.

 

The White House will immediately issue a Whoops, how did that question make its way onto the census. Dennison's government paid personal attorney Barr will immediately launch an investigation that will confirm that including the question was a total accident and won't happen again during Dennison's term in office (which won't hard because the census only happens every 10 years. No need for further investigations because it was an inadvertent mistake.

[y66]

From Acosta Resigned. The Caligula Administration Lives On. by Michelle Goldberg at NYT:

 

On Monday, Donald Trump disinvited the then-British ambassador, Kim Darroch, from an official administration dinner with the emir of Qatar, because he was mad about leaked cables in which Darroch assessed the president as “insecure” and “incompetent.”

 

There was room at the dinner, however, for Trump’s friend Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots, who was charged in a prostitution sting this year. Kraft was allegedly serviced at a massage parlor that had once been owned by Li Yang, known as Cindy, a regular at Trump’s club Mar-a-Lago. Yang is now the target of an F.B.I. inquiry into whether she funneled Chinese money into Trump’s political operation.

 

An ordinary president would not want to remind the world of the Kraft and Yang scandals at a time when Jeffrey Epstein’s arrest has hurled Trump’s other shady associations back into the limelight. Epstein, indicted on charges of abusing and trafficking underage girls, was a friend of Trump’s until the two had a falling out, reportedly over a failed business deal. The New York Times reported on a party Trump threw at Mar-a-Lago whose only guests were him, Epstein and around two dozen women “flown in to provide the entertainment.”

 

Epstein, of course, was also linked to the administration in another way. The president’s labor secretary, Alexander Acosta, was the United States attorney who oversaw a secret, obscenely lenient deal that let Epstein escape federal charges for sex crimes over a decade ago. On Friday, two days after a tendentious, self-serving news conference defending his handling of the Epstein case, Acosta finally resigned.

 

Even with Acosta gone, however, Epstein remains a living reminder of the depraved milieu from which the president sprang, and of the corruption and misogyny that continue to swirl around him. Trump has been only intermittently interested in distancing himself from that milieu. More often he has sought, whether through strategy or instinct, to normalize it.

 

Edit: From NYT: Mr. Trump’s presidency has set a first-term record for White House staff and cabinet turnover. When Mr. Acosta’s resignation is effective on July 19, four cabinet secretaries and the White House chief of staff position will all be “acting,” unconfirmed by the Senate.

[johnu]

Can anybody question that there are 2 Americas, Blue State America,and Red State America?

 

In Red State America:

 

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee Honors KKK Grand Wizard With Proclamation

 

Despite public outcry, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee ® re-signed a proclamation Thursday declaring July 13 as Nathan Bedford Forrest Day in the state, honoring the Ku Klux Klan grand wizard and former Confederate general.

Forrest is known to history as a bloodthirsty slave trader and the KKK’s very first grand wizard. In 1864, he led Confederate soldiers to commit what’s known as the Fort Pillow Massacre, according to The Washington Post. Three hundred Union soldiers, including 200 black soldiers, were murdered there, often at point-blank range.

Long live the Confederacy :rolleyes:

[y66]

Can anybody question that there are 2 Americas, Blue State America,and Red State America?

 

In Red State America:

 

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee Honors KKK Grand Wizard With Proclamation

 

Long live the Confederacy :rolleyes:

Forrest Day has been a holiday in Tennessee since 1921 and a special day of observation since 1969. You want a Republican governor to end the hate? People in hell want ice water.

[Winstonm]

I've pondered often on the causes of the notion of entitlement - which encompasses white privilege - and I've come to the conclusion that ego is at its heart, that without a comparative lesser the self is negated. In my view, the entirety of the Southern viewpoint stems from that inadequacy of ego.