Free speech is the cornerstone of any democracy, it is a societal imperative to protect as a right if a people who consider themselves to be free would remain so.
We hear things everyday that we may not agree with, that we may be offended by whether it be on the news, the lyrics of a song, part of the dialogue in a movie or television presentation, words in a book, even in conversation or voices emanating from a crowd in the Mall.
I heard a lot of things I didn’t like growing up and still do, but I’d rather know where a person is coming from than not to.
In a perfect world we would all walk around singing kumbaya smiling and hugging one another but perfection isn’t the nature of this imperfect world we live in, and while it is a worthy cause to strive for perfection it isn’t possible and ain’t going to happen.
I have no desire to see a world of thought and word police for the slippery slope that has historically been shown to be – I don’t want books redacted, banned, or history ignored, watered down, covered up, or revised.
Our response to events should be thoughtful, not knee jerk reactions or driven by what become the memes and sound bites of the day.
If you think about it for it a moment the white nationalists at Charlottesville by exercising their right to free speech shot themselves in the foot – they set the wheels in motion to ramp up the national conversation and accelerate the removal of monuments they rally around – I’d say that’s a good thing and it’s to their distinct disadvantage not to now crawl back into the caves and slime they emerged from.
Not only have the results been something other than they desired but it clarified the character of this president if there was any doubt left.
The follow up rally in Boston attended by a comparative mere handful of these nationalist “patriots” serves as a proof that more is accomplished when they speak than when they don’t.
Free speech and freedom of assembly have led in the aftermath to neo nazis posting youtube videos sobbing about how their lives are ruined in the midst of attempting to portray themselves as mere non violent idealists even as they have attempted to ruin the lives of others and admit they “talk a lot of shit on the internet” but……..
I want to know who people like this are rather than having them exist in secret. I prefer for them to be visible, to be seen and heard rather than burning crosses and churches in the night or hiding in the dark web.
In the midst of roiling the waters a clarity is beginning to emerge as economic and arts advisors leave the current administration en masse, and wonder of wonders conservative pols scramble to denounce what they’ve preferred to avoid addressing – that too attributable to the exercise of free speech by bigots and the current president.
Change seldom if ever comes in the form of manna falling from heaven, meaningful change is capricious often extracting a sacrifice – at Charlottesville it was the loss of life of a young woman and two law enforcement members – perhaps if statues are to be set in place they should be of those who fell at Charlottesville.
The below link is a prime example of making lemonade from lemons.
Steve Bannon is out – been predicting this for weeks, Charlottesville became the catalyst, the hue and cry the last straw, with Bannon’s ouster being an attempt to put lipstick on this pig of an administration.
Be interesting to see Breitbart and Bannon’s response if not immediately a little down the road.
Whether you support a boycott against Israel or not this is a slippery slope to head down.
Trump has repeatedly railed about making it easier to sue people who exercise their free speech right against him and his administration, the passage of a bill such as this would make it incrementally easier to criminalize other protests and boycotts.
If Trump had his way the media would only publish handouts from his administration and the entire population would spend their day sucking up to him in the same manner his cabinet and staff members do.
When it comes to a draconian approach nothing is off the table for this current administration and makes me wonder if Trump’s supporters are tired of “winning” yet as he and they walk around with a big L plastered on their forehead?
There’s little that has a shock value anymore when it comes to the conservative agenda but for members of a party that insists it all about individual rights and liberalism to sign onto a piece of legislation like this it should be something of wake up for those who like their conservative counterparts believe party allegiance trumps all other considerations.
Liberals should take note this is a bipartisan effort and point their fingers at both sides of aisle if it’s really about the values they express.
Mahatma Gandhi led an entire nation to independence – Nelson Mandela freed a nation from apartheid – Martin Luther King galvanized the civil rights movement.
What they shared in common were two things above all else – the color of their skin being dark and oppression.
The nations have had great leaders but not a one among them was capable of achieving a comparable independence – that in part was the result of centuries of war, being so out gunned and out manned leading to such a reduction in numbers that by the dawn of the twentieth century we had not only been rounded up and confined to gulags but the combined population of our nations had been reduced to roughly two hundred and fifty thousand men, women, and children in a nation whose population numbered in the tens of millions.
Sixty million people alone had immigrated to the U.S. in the 18th and 19th centuries, to say we were being numerically overwhelmed is an understatement as some of our nations were driven to extinction.
Armies march on their stomachs, they are sustained by resources, cut off the supply by butchering tens of millions of buffalo and the impact is and was predictable.
Introduce biological weapons in the form of smallpox and other diseases and they have the same effect as a modern day drone – an unknown invisible adversary you can neither see nor are equipped to contend with.
Place a bounty on the scalps of men, even women and children adding additional foes to vie with.
Rape and pillage, make tobacco pouches out women’s breast as part of a psychological warfare to instill fear.
Steal our children and send them to schools to beat and sexually abuse as part of the process of “killing the ndn to save the man” as they are being “educated” and told of the undying love of some distant god who will cast you into a lake of burning fire in a New York minute if you don’t believe and surrender all you have ever known, who you are, and who you will ever be in the context of the forced disruption of your upbringing.
There’s a saying that money talks and bullshit walks but an additional saying should be with enough money bullshit not only walks but capable of running and controlling legislation.
It’s no secret money doesn’t flow in and out of the coffers of the poor or working class and I believe on some level there is a conscious design to that in that it insures a dependent work force leading to a competition for available jobs, a competition that will insure low wages and a lack of benefits.
Another example would be farmers who are up to their neck in debt struggling to keep up with corporate owned commercial farms – they are systematically being pushed out in the pursuit of greed and influence just as mom and pop neighborhood grocery or hardware stores are.
Consider this, retail prices are influenced by the cost of distribution – if the cost of distribution goes up as in fuel cost then retail prices follow suite.
Conversely if distribution related to fuel cost goes down then retail prices should as well, but that hasn’t been the case has it?
Additionally we are told a free market economy inspires competition, a competition that results in lower prices so there’s nothing to worry about and the consumer is getting a great deal.
Really? Someone want to provide an example?
How much money is enough? If you ask corporate moguls, Wall Street, and the banking industry the answer is there is never enough because it’s about more than money, it’s about the power and influence that accompany it.
A concept that surely lends itself to the adage that power corrupts.
Should the benefits of productivity and wealth trickle down to elevate the standard of living and overall well being of a nations citizens or should it “trickle up” to further enrich a select few and insure the status quo?
Any economist who isn’t squarely in the pocket of conservatives and the one percenters will tell you that wages have not kept pace with either productivity or profit – in fact if not mistaken I believe the metric is wages are something like thirty years behind.
Instead of wages keeping pace credit became the substitute turning workers into little more than indentured servants trying to keep their head above water in the midst of deciding which bill to pay as opposed to meals, clothing, whether to visit a doctor or not or to fill a prescription as corporations and the wealthy were further enriched and the chasm between the haves and have nots grew steadily more egregious.
Should jobs be exported out to cheap foreign labor markets so the profit margin can be increased – is that what the “Dream” is about or is it a global extension of corporate greed seeking to take advantage of impoverished people?
If the working class is exploited in this country how much more will workers in other countries be?
And to what end, where will the indifference stop?
Will it end with those who stand in line for the latest iPhone, tech gadget, or the fall line of foreign made shoes and fashion from Ivanka, or Trump construction projects using imported steel and materials while railing about creating jobs and making America Great?
Assuming the reader is of the working class is that what you believe it is about?
The working class is the backbone of this or any other nation, nothing takes place without them.
They are the heroes – not Gates, Soros, Buffet, the Kochs, or any other ivory tower residents.
Not Wall Street hedge fund operators, the banking industry, the Trump’s, Kushners, or big pharma.
When people wake up to that simple fact and accept the reality forgoing cults of personality and blind party allegiance then maybe a Gandhi, King, Mandela, or someone from within this country whether black, red, yellow, white, or brown will emerge and the bullshit of money controlling every aspect of government will become a thing of the past.
Bottom line is Trump ain’t that person, he is the very antithesis, and for his supporters I suggest they look inside that make America great hat or shirt they bought and so proudly wear thinking it makes them a patriot, take note of the label where it was made, and then either get real or shut the hell up about jobs, the economy, and making the country great again.
What the industrialized nations should be doing is helping other countries to elevate themselves and become capable of providing good decent jobs to their people rather than exploiting the poverty and need – they should do so without profit or influence being the motivation.
When a people, any people, have the ability to earn a decent living it can in many ways change attitudes and lead to a broader acceptance of diversity – it can in fact lead to a societal awakening where intolerance becomes more the exception than the norm.
All people everywhere deserve physical, spiritual, and economic freedom.
And so another rant sandwiched inbetween posts of photos some may agree with and some may not, but I have never predicated my beliefs or willingness to speak them based upon a premise that life is one big popularity contest, nor do I believe anyone should.
If I believe it I’m going to speak it, if shown to be wrong I’ll say so with the same level of conviction.
Brilliant Colbert take on Anthony Scaramucci aka “the Mooch”.
Here’s something to consider as the noose continues to tighten around this administration – since the appointment of Scaramucci the denigrating of AG Jeff Sessions has reached new levels and I’m convinced he is on his way out.
The justice in this if true is that Sessions will not only lose his job but will not be able to reclaim his Senate seat – the price to pay for selling out and supporting an egomaniacal lying buffoon.
At the core of this is Sessions recusing himself from the investigation related to Russia – ergo he can’t effectively obstruct it, he can’t “protect” the president as Trump seems to believe he should.
Sessions recusal ultimately paved the way for the appointment of former FBI DirectorRobert Mueller as a special prosecutor – a man who was overwhelming praised and approved during his confirmation hearing for head of the FBI by both parties.
Mueller has let it be known he is fully empowered to investigate not only Trump’s tax records and business dealings but those of his family and fully intends to do just that.
A potential exists in this for all hell to break loose, to clearly expose Trump – so what to do?
First off get rid of Sessions and appoint a new AG who won’t be restricted by recusal and willing to play ball with Trump.
A new AG that will pick up the cudgel and attack Mueller, an attack meant to either marginalize Mueller’s investigation or lead to his firing.
The Mooch fits the bill for a Trump flunky to a T, he’s a shameless fan boy, just as it would be reasonable to assume any new AG would also be.
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
I think to begin with an essential premise to understand is that all governments and their agencies lie.
They always have, and if the past is prologue there’s no reason to believe they won’t continue to.
For all the discussions about rights and the Constitution what is often ignored are a few simple words in the Preamble and they are to “promote the general welfare”.
That’s a very broad an inclusive statement – it can be assumed taking note of the remaining words that the general welfare includes the pursuit of justice, domestic tranquility, and providing a common defence against enemies both foreign and domestic while insuring the “Blessings of Liberty”.
In this promotion no mention is made of creating a caste system where any are favored above another – nowhere does it state that the wealthy or corporations are more deserving.
And yet it cannot be denied a caste system does exist – that corporations and the wealthy have the greater influence, receive special attention, and are routinely attended to by both political parties.
As long as such inequities exist the common welfare and domestic tranquility will amount to little more than words penned long ago.
Government and a majority of politicians have always been corrupt, but the bar has been so lowered that some demographics seem to believe this to be an acceptable norm – they in fact appear to revel in it.
And to what end? Do rhetoric or blatant lies possess a greater substance than truthfulness and the common welfare of all citizens?
Is it a “Blessing of Liberty” or an example of “justice” for people to work for substandard wages while the wealthy with influence and lobbyists literally make millions?
Does passing out ethics waivers to bring individuals into an administration or increasing the number of swamp denizens serve the common welfare?
Are Elders blessed when they don’t receive a cost of living adjustment for years in the midst of politicians giving themselves one? Is “justice” to be found in that?
If you believe so then you should support both the Republican Party and this administration because that is what they stand for.
This and nothing more, not “family values”, not justice and equity, not leaving no child behind, not clean water nor clean air and food, not consumer protections or regulations holding Wall Street and the banking industry accountable, nor a healthcare system that every over “civilized” nation has.
The current administration is the predictable culmination of an erosion of ethics in government and by extension voters who have served to enable the decline by ignoring their responsibility to hold elected officials accountable in lieu of swearing a loyalty oath to the party of their choice.
Whatever integrity the Republican party had went out the window when they allowed Evangelicals the influence they have – Evangelicals who thump their bibles and support a man who is the very antithesis of the principles they claim to live their life by……. which in my opinion makes them as fraudulent as Trump is.
Barry Goldwater a former long serving Republican senator warned of this, Eisenhower warned of the industrial/military complex and corporate greed.
Acceptance is an embrace, a surrender, to an in your face arrogance and dystopian belief that a lie has a greater value than the truth – that a bankruptcy prone pathologically lying real estate developer is in actuality a political savant.
That it’s acceptable to kick everyone else but the wealthy, robber baron corporations and their CEOs to the curb.
I submit there is really nothing new in any of this – it is a matter of degrees, and having gone down that path the nation has turned against itself, a nation in the midst of an ideological civil war the toll of which is yet to be determined, and in so doing cannibalizing itself and the very precepts it claims to hold dear above all others.
The evidence continues to mount that Trump supporters haven’t a clue about much of anything.
They’re like mass produced wind up toys coming off an assembly line – wind them up and they march in the same lock step saying what they’ve been programmed to say.
I’m not a Constitutional expert nor have I ever claimed to be one, but in researching many of the treaties the nations entered into with the government it was only natural if not essential to become familiar with the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and related Supreme Court rulings.
Additionally that led to familiarizing myself with the Federalist Papers and Thomas Paine’s Common Sense.
My suggestion for Trump’s supporters is that they put down the yellow journalism rag mags they favor, take a break from Dumbbart, Fox News etc, their favored “reality shows”, and instead familiarize themselves with the precepts this nation was supposedly founded upon.
If their professed concern is indeed about making America great the Constitution and Bill of Rights as written would be a good starting point.
I have a friend whose given to say when a person makes a fool of themselves that they “tore their ass” – in this instance tore seems kind of mild, shredded would be more like it.
