Post-Trump: III (decline, further tantrums, legal proceedings, book deals etc)

This interesting opinion piece in today's NYT gives an overview of the fate in store for the USA under a Trump Administration:

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/21/...MNW9VOKBCnfhuCfsSDzV-El9GNWKAO&smid=url-share

The link to Christianity Today in the article is also worth a read.

More and more outlets are waking up to the danger of Christian nationalism, the idea that the USA is a "Christian nation" (which, by definition is impossible) and that its cherry-picked view of what exactly constitutes Christianity will be imposed on the country as a whole. Remember that Trump's most enthusiastic supporters are "evangelicals". Already we're seeing religious views imposed on parts of the country - the abortion bans are a purely religious phenomenon (essentially a Catholic doctrine, only relatively recently adopted by "evangelicals" as a wedge issue to get the faithful suitably riled). And we're seeing the dumbing-down of Florida, as Ron DeSanctimonius (something that Trump actually got right) interferes in libraries and places of education, telling them what they can and cannot teach. Indeed, the Florida actions could be see as seeking to fulfil the Seven Mountain Mandate of the Dominionist Movement - a "Christian" takeover of the "seven mountains" of society - family, religion, education, media, entertainment, business, and government.

Gilead may not be that far away...

 

Perhaps we could have a new version of the Horst Wessel Lied for Ron:

Die Fahne hoch! Die Reihen fest geschlossen!
Republikaner, marsch mit festem Schritt.
Kam'raden, Farbige, LTBQ, ausrotten,
Machen Staatsweit eine Reinigung mit.

 

It seems, from the NAACP website that the NAACP assumes everybody knows what NAACP stands for. It's clear enough that it's a civil liberties/black minority rights thing, but as far as I can tell, nowhere on the website does it spell out what NAACP is an acronym for, nor does it ever refer to itself as anything other than 'NAACP'. So it's hard to tell whether it's a government-sponsored regulatory thing, a civil liberties organisation, or what. Maybe if you don't know, you don't need to know.

 

Historically, "National Association for the Advancement of Colored People." Long established civil rights advocacy NGO, quite successful in the courts sometimes. There's a lot of history to catch up on with them if you want to persue. They don't expand NAACP much these days because "colored people" is not so acceptable in modern usage.

 

Yet "people of colour" is (I think).

It's a funny old thing, this language game.

 

E. Jean Carroll Seeks New Damages From Trump for Comments on CNN

From the New York Times

Poor Donald…

 

E Jean Carroll files for new damages after Trump’s CNN town hall remarks

Author’s court filing comes after the ex-president demeaned her a day after being found liable for sexual abuse

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/may/22/e-jean-carroll-donald-trump-cnn-town-hall-damages

Poor drumpf, 5million $s poorer so far, perhaps another 5mil $s will shut his huge GOP GOB.

 

Seems to me the whole point of the debt ceiling standoff is that the GOP think that a 9-man majority in the House of Representatives entitles them to undo the past three and a half years of Democratic legislation. This is either so blindingly obvious that no one else is saying it, or it's not nearly as profound as I like to think.

 

I am not at all sure their mental process is best described as 'thinking.' Too much under influence of spite and malice.

 

Could someone explain the meaning of the ‘dark Brandon’ stuff I keep hearing about?

 

Here you go : https://www.vox.com/culture/23300286/biden-dark-brandon-meme-maga-why-confusing-explained

 

I, for one, an annoyed that my long-out-of-fashion first name has been co-opted for political euphemisms. I used to enjoy hearing "Let's go, Brandon!" (except in cases of tardiness).

 

It was never meant to reach right to the bottom. The serfs were slaves and if they were lucky weren't killed.

 

Since 1980, when the Republicans are in control, net spending (spending - tax revenue) goes up. When the Democrats are in control, spending is flat or rises slightly. As Mitch McConnell said, "a president has never lost reelection by spending too much." In other words, spending makes presidents popular, and austerity makes them unpopular. The debt ceil ploy by Republicans is a purely political move: to either tank the economy, or get Biden to agree to spending cuts. Either way, Biden's popularity takes a hit. So yes, blindingly obvious, and not profound.

The Democrats are there own worst enemy. They could've dealt with this durning the lame duck session after the 2022 elections while they were still in the majority.

 

Depends what you by “it”. The patronage and protection certainly was meant to reach to the bottom, whether it did or not is another matter. So no, serfs were not slaves, serfs had certain rights. Of course, those rights were never easy to enact against one’s social superior, but feudalism was a system of duties and obligations between the three estates of nobility, clergy and peasantry. In the early days of feudalism there were itinerant courts that toured the country to collect taxes, dispense justice and to hear disputes. There was one (ISTR) case where a woman appealed direct to the King about against her lord who raped her, and she won.

 

Exactly. At least the impression you get is that back then people also to some extent understood and respected that with class/status/entitlement came certain responsibilities and obligations. How that worked (through religious fear, threat of violence/excommunication etc.) is obviously important, but it is actually less important than the fact that it did work. The model implodes when certain factions of society no longer respects that they have to provide something in return for their privileges.

Our model of society today may have changed some things on the surface, but underneath is probably more similar than we would like. IMO we don't have enough checks and balances in place to withstand someone directly assaulting the basic model head-on, as evidenced by the lack of respect for convention displayed by Trump, Johnson, Bannon and similar people. The irony is of course that these people exploit democracy to undermine democracy...

 

So DeSantis to launch his bid alongside Elon Musk. Not sure whether that is an advantage or a disadvantage!

 

Sounds like the initial ingredients required for c soup.

 

I imagine c standing for something other than 'chicken.'