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Top 10 Idiots

(593 posts)
Wed Jun 24, 2020, 05:00 PM Jun 2020

Top 10 Conservative Idiots #9-2: Kung Flu: Enter The Fist Edition


Top 10 Conservative Idiots #9-2: Kung Flu: Enter The Fist Edition

Welcome back to the Top 10 Conservative Idiots! How’s everybody doing? Are you guys doing fucking good? I know, right? Another week under the Coronavirus, another week of absolute insanity, and it’s not ending anytime soon. Man do I miss live audiences. But next week we might have to do a deep dive into the White Male Groper’s Club. They have added a lot of new members recently – there’s Chris D’Leia, there’s Danny Masterson, there’s Jeffrey Ross, there’s Ansel Elgort, the list just goes on and on and on. And speaking of Ansel Elgort, this really ruins one of my favorite flicks of the last few years, the movie Baby Driver. Which of course you know revolves around a getaway driver for a ruthless mob boss played by Kevin Spacey. So in one movie they have Kevin Spacey who’s a ruthless grab asser, and now they have Ansel Elgort, who’s also a ruthless grab asser. Like really, WTF is going on here? What were they thinking when they cast this movie? It’s still a great movie, but I can never view it in the same light now. But the irony that the two are trying to stay out of jail. And speaking of jail, OK that’s enough of the intro right now because we have a lot of idiocy to get to. But first John Oliver is back and the latest Last Week Tonight spells doom on America’s prisons, yet another industry surrounded by corruption and greed that is falling prey to the beast known as COVID-19:



Where do we begin this week? Well in the number one slot, we are finally beginning to recognize the end of slavery, known around the world as June 19th, or Juneteenth, for the day it is. But all attention is on the guy who we call president, Donald J. Trump (1) and his first MAGA rally since the Coronavirus outbreak began in Tulsa. And it was quite the shit show! Taking the second slot this week, is also Donald Trump (2) and this week the SCOTUS decisions that have been coming down the pike are really riling up everything that DJT stands for, and boy is he pissed! Triggered, perhaps? Taking the third slot this week is Florida Man Matt Gaetz (3). He stepped in it with a Twitter feud with Sons Of Anarchy actor Ron Pearlman, and it is escalating into a real life fight with Ted Cruz joining at the helm! Yeah that really happened! In the number 4 slot this week is also Donald Trump (4) and is he getting lazier, or is his health really deteriorating? Experts weigh in on his health after his absolutely disastrous speech at the West Point graduation ceremony. Taking the 5th slot this week is our weekly investigative piece, Top 10 Investigates (5) and this week, Americans are the unhappiest that we’ve been in almost 50 years, and we will get to the bottom of the news and it’s not good. At slot #6 this week is our weekly visit to the Holy Church Of The Top 10 in “Holy Shit” and this week, after Christian conservatives get their asses handed to them by SCOTUS, are they going to jump ship or stay the course? Our resident pastor will detail two plots they could undertake. Taking the 7th slot this week, instead of “How Is This StilL A Thing?”, we’re going to ask instead, “How Is This *NOT* A Thing?” and for our first segment we’re going to ask why isn’t the day marked as the end of slavery, Juneteenth, a national holiday? It really truly boggles the mind. In the 8th slot this week we have a new edition of Conspiracy Corner, were K-Pop fans and America’s teenagers responsible for the empty seats at Trump’s Tulsa rally? Yeah probably but they just didn’t show up! In the number 9 (NEIN!!!) slot this week we have an all new “I Need A Drink”, and we’re going to have some drinks and tell you what it’s going to be like as movie studios restart production. How do you film movies in the socially distant era? Well, we need some drinks! Finally this week in our ongoing coverage of the Road To The White House, is it possible that Joe Biden could actually flip the state of Texas? It’s possible and also not possible! Enjoy! And as always don’t forget the key!

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[font size="8"]Donald Trump
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Everyone knew that Trump holding an indoor event in the middle of the deadliest pandemic in 100 years was a colossally bad idea. And holding it in Tulsa, Oklahoma – the site of America’s worst race riot, on the day that slavery was ended – was also a bad idea. But allow me to engage in a bit of schadenfreude here. Because, nobody showed up! That’s right – absolutely nobody showed up to this rally. Don’t worry, we will get to that in a bit here. But he can make all the excuses all he wants, the fact of the matter is that COVID still reigns supreme, and until we start reeling in this monster, we can kiss large stadium gatherings like this goodbye. But that didn’t stop his most hardcore fans from showing up.

President Donald Trump is "furious" at the "underwhelming" crowd at his rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday evening, a major disappointment for what had been expected to be a raucous return to the campaign trail after three months off because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to multiple people close to the White House.

The president was fuming at his top political aides Saturday even before the rally began after his campaign revealed that six members of the advance team on the ground in Tulsa had tested positive for COVID-19, including Secret Service personnel, a person familiar with the discussions said.

Trump asked those around him why the information was exposed and expressed annoyance that the coverage ahead of his mega-rally was dominated by the revelation.

While the Trump re-election effort boasted that it would fill BOK Center, which seats more than 19,000 people, only 6,200 supporters ultimately occupied the general admission sections, the Tulsa fire marshal told NBC News.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/trump-furious-underwhelming-crowd-tulsa-rally-n1231674




Ooh boy this one hit Trump where it hurts! Yes, he’s about as mad as an angry, animated Lewis Black with flames shooting out of his head. Of course, anger is the only emotion that Trump knows. Does he know fear? No. Does he know compassion? No. Does he know disgust? No. Does he know Joy? Hell freaking no! Trump wouldn’t know joy if it bit him in his ass! So he’s hopping mad about what happened in Tulsa, and it was glorious. This might be my favorite thing about this whole rally. Can we throw that image up there?



May that image be forever known as the downfall of the Trump administration! And I love all of the Spinal Tap comparisons – Trump might be at that stage.

Plus, the history of Trump campaign managers has an eerie similarity to the history of Spinal Tap drummers. In the 2016 campaign, Lewandowski gave way to Paul Manafort (remember him!) who gave way to Kellyanne Conway. And throughout it all, there were whispers that Kushner or Ivanka (or both) were the real brains behind the operation. Or that Trump himself was effectively managing his own campaign, making all the important calls about what do say and do.

Parscale is, without question then, the most likely target of Trump's anger. But go back to Kaitlan's tweet -- this part in particular: "Anyone, including WH aides, could be fired depending on coverage."

The key -- and revealing -- bit there is "depending on coverage." Trump is seething, yes. But he's also watching cable TV. And taking calls. And making calls. And trying to suss out -- from all of that -- who the collective "they" are blaming for the Tulsa rally debacle. That, as much as his own sense, will determine who gets fired.

Because, again, Trump is all about perception: It's not about whose fault it really is that the crowd over the weekend didn't live up to the hype. (In truth, there's no way it's one person's fault.) It's about who the media, his friends and major party donors blame. That's the person Trump will blame.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/22/politics/trump-rally-tulsa-2020/index.html




Oh god that movie is a classic. I could totally see Trump going down that road. Maybe next he will open up for petting zoos and puppet shows. Assuming we have such activities in the near future. But you can bet there will be some firings and when that happens, get ready for the return of the Trumper Games! I mean this whole year just can’t get any weirder. And Trump’s gone through as many cabinet members as Spinal Tap has drummers. At Trump got him some ratings! Oh, those sweet, sweet ratings!

Now it’s apparent where many of President Donald Trump’s supporters who stayed away from Saturday’s campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, were instead: they were home watching it on television.

Fox News Channel, which aired Trump’s speech live, had the biggest Saturday night audience in the network’s 24-year history, the Nielsen company said. During Trump’s address at 9 p.m. on Saturday, Fox had 8.2 million people watching.

CNN and MSNBC aired only clips of Trump talking, yet each news network had about twice as many viewers as they normally get on Saturday nights. Collectively, the three networks had nearly 12 million viewers for its Trump coverage, Nielsen said.

For those in Oklahoma, the night’s biggest story was the arena’s empty seats.

In the absence of sports or first-run scripted series, news continues to be the dominant force in television viewing. Fox News Channel’s prime-time average of 3.68 million viewers for the week topped all broadcast and cable networks.
https://apnews.com/c9e9a3808ea5ff2280944f5d57e53daa




Yeah so there’s no sports, or recreation, or entertainment of any kind during this nightmare known as COVID-19. So Trump is the only game in town! He’s literally the kind of guy who would find a way to broadcast from the Springfield badlands while the entire world was held hostage by a nuclear bomb, and I wouldn’t put that past him. But that’s not stopping him from taking his show on the road!

President Donald Trump is scheduled to visit the Arizona-Mexico border, then hold a rally in Phoenix on Tuesday.

His visit to Arizona comes as the state is experiencing large increases in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations.

The president recognized two of Arizona's most prominent Republican officials, Gov. Doug Ducey and U.S. Senator Martha McSally.

Ducey was greeted with some "boos" from the crowd.

But Trump complimented Ducey for the work he's done in Arizona and his win at the polls nearly two years ago.

The President said he asked Ducey how Trump was doing in the state, "He said you're doing really well and I said good because he knows better than anybody."

Trump asked the crowd to support McSally in November because she supports the border wall. Plus, Trump said, her opponent Mark Kelly "is very weak on China and other things."
https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2020/06/23/updates-president-trump-rally-tuesday-arizona/3238171001/





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[font size="8"]2020 SCOTUS Session, Round 1
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The tide is most definitely turning folks, and boy does it need it more than ever. After Trump brought us to the brink of World War III, and he brought us to the brink of annihilation with COVID, it seems people are fighting back and hopping mad. Sit tight, it’s only June, but it is going to be an absolutely rocky ride until January. But some light at the end of the tunnel – Trump lost two major blows to his administration last week. The first was the decision to overturn DACA – one of his key talking points in the 2016 election, to overturn that referendum by the Obama administration. And guess what? He not only lost on that one, he lost big time!

In a major rebuke to President Trump, the U.S. Supreme Court has blocked the administration's plan to dismantle an Obama-era program that has protected 700,000 so-called DREAMers from deportation. The vote was 5-4, with Chief Justice John Roberts writing the opinion.

Under the Obama program, qualified individuals brought to the U.S. as children were given temporary legal status if they graduated from high school or were honorably discharged from the military, and if they passed a background check. Just months after taking office, Trump moved to revoke the program, only to be blocked by lower courts — and now the Supreme Court.

Roberts' opinion for the court was a narrow but powerful rejection of the way the Trump administration went about trying to abolish the program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA.

"We do not decide whether DACA or its rescission are sound policies," Roberts wrote. "The wisdom of those decisions is none of our concern. Here we address only whether the Administration complied with the procedural requirements in the law that insist on 'a reasoned explanation for its action.' "
https://www.npr.org/2020/06/18/829858289/supreme-court-upholds-daca-in-blow-to-trump-administration




Yes, HA HA!!! That is a colossal blow to the Trump administration. But that wasn’t the only decision that I want to talk about. Another one of the biggest talking points of the Trump 2016 campaign was ending gay marriage and increasing discrimination. They have been trying to score points with their ultra far right religious base by pandering issues like this. And guess what? They’re on the losing side of history with this one! This is definitely some of the best news in a while, and boy did we need a day like that!

Federal civil rights law protects gay, lesbian and transgender workers, the Supreme Court ruled Monday.

The landmark ruling will extend protections to millions of workers nationwide and is a defeat for the Trump administration, which argued that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act that bars discrimination based on sex did not extend to claims of gender identity and sexual orientation.

The 6-3 opinion was written by Justice Neil Gorsuch, President Donald Trump's first Supreme Court nominee, and joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and the court's four liberal justices.

"An employer who fires an individual for being homosexual or transgender fires that person for traits or actions it would not have questioned in members of a different sex. Sex plays a necessary and undisguisable role in the decision, exactly what Title VII forbids," Gorsuch wrote. https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/15/politics/supreme-court-lgbtq-employment-case/index.html




Yes, that is why you fail! So two huge blows to the Trump campaign. And if you fail that hard, you might as well fail in such a way that people scream “Wow, that guy failed!”. So while 2020 may be one of the most miserable failures of a year that we’ve seen in history, there are some bright spots. And what else does SCOTUS have on the horizon for this year? We’ll definitely cover these as they happen.

The Supreme Court delivered surprising wins to liberals this week in a pair of blockbuster decisions that forbade businesses from firing workers base on their sexual orientation or gender identity and halted the Trump administration’s efforts to end the Obama-era DACA program, which shields the young migrants known as “Dreamers.”

But those on the left still see potential danger ahead. In the coming days, the top court is expected to hand down a decision in a high-profile abortion dispute that could provide signals about how the panel, which counts two appointees of President Donald Trump in its conservative majority, will treat reproductive rights in the years to come.

“Kind of feels like we’re being softened up for the blow, huh?” Sasha Samberg-Champion, a liberal civil rights lawyer and former Justice Department attorney, wrote in a representative post on Twitter on Thursday, after the DACA decision was released.

“Progressives must keep their guard up,” Brian Fallon, the executive director of Demand Justice, a Supreme Court activist group, said in a statement.
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/21/supreme-court-abortion-case-could-end-or-add-to-liberal-win-streak.html




Here’s the thing progressives, while we can’t go out and hold victory parades just yet, we can’t get too cocky or arrogant. We must savor each victory while it lasts, because who knows what tomorrow will hold? And please tell me because even I don’t know! But one that could potentially be as damaging as abortion is a 2nd amendment case - but thankfully SCOTUS is giving the gun rights advocates the heave ho for now!

The Supreme Court declined on Monday to take up several cases regarding the scope of the Second Amendment.

Despite a low hurdle for the right-leaning Supreme Court, the justices turned down petitions from 10 challenges to state laws established to limit the availability and accessibility of some firearms and when they can be carried in public.

It's been over a decade since 2008's landmark 5-4 ruling in District of Columbia v Heller that held the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to keep and bear arms at home for self-defense. Except for a follow-up decision two years later, the court has not weighed in on Second Amendment rights significantly again.

In April, the court also declined to weigh in on the issue.

Five of the 10 cases the court declined to look at asked the justices to determine whether the Second Amendment allows the government to restrict the ability of citizens to carry a firearm outside the home to those with "good cause" or "justifiable need" to do so. Two of the cases were high-profile challenges to state laws involving bans on certain semiautomatic firearms and high capacity magazines, one from Illinois and one from Massachusetts. The remaining three cases had a narrower scope, but none of the 10 will be argued before the justices.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/15/politics/second-amendment-supreme-court/index.html





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[font size="8"]Matt Gaetz vs Ron Pearlman
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You know I love a good beef. Of course you know that Florida Man has representatives in Congress. And Matt Gaetz is that Florida Man. He’s had not one, not two, but 7 DUIs. You know, fool me once, shame on you. Fool me 7 times, well, you must be Matt Gaetz! Now Matt, you shouldn’t have picked a fight with 73 year old Ron Pearlman, who was the star of the show Sons Of Anarchy, a show about murderous vigilante biker gangs who hawk dangerous weapons and drugs to unseen masses. What did you learn, Matt? Oh who am I kidding? The guy who has 7 DUIs apparently doesn’t learn anything! But this fight between a celebrity and a representative is the perfect reason why 2020 is a very strange and weird time to be alive.

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and actor Ron Perlman spent part of Sunday feuding with each on Twitter after Perlman blasted the congressman for criticizing the U.S. Soccer board of directors' recent vote to repeal a policy that required players to stand for the national anthem.

The board voted earlier this week to repeal the policy, which the league enacted years back after U.S. women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe joined NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick and other athletes in taking a knee during the national anthem before games in their respective sports to protest police brutality and racism.

The repeal follows weeks of protests against racial inequality and police treatment of people of color in the country prompted by the police killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and other African Americans.

Gaetz was one of a number of Republican lawmakers, including President Trump, who knocked the soccer federation earlier this week after news broke of the vote to repeal the policy.
https://thehill.com/blogs/in-the-know/in-the-know/502692-ron-perlman-matt-gaetz-get-into-back-and-forth-on-twitter




Oh yes they are! Now here’s where it gets weird. As if things escalated quickly between Perlman and Gaetz, if you’re going to use a pop culture reference against someone, let alone someone who starred in the show itself, at least, I don’t know, maybe watch the show itself? Yeah because when you do and you fail to use the reference as it was intended, well, you are the one who is the loser.

The latest fight between a Hollywood star and a Republican came this weekend between Ron Perlman and Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz, after the pro-Trump politician condemned the U.S. Soccer Federation for removing a requirement for players to stand during the national anthem.

But Gaetz’s attempt to clap back at the “Hellboy” star backfired after he attempted to suggest Perlman was a hypocrite for opposing racism even though he played a villainous motorcycle gang leader on FX’s “Sons of Anarchy.”

Gaetz said on Twitter this past week that he was planning to write a bill forcing athletes on USSF teams to stand during the anthem. Some U.S. Soccer players such as two-time World Cup champion Megan Rapinoe have made headlines in the past for kneeling during the traditional pre-match playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

“If our soccer team is going to disrespect our anthem and our flag, it is not essential for us to have,” Gaetz tweeted.
https://www.thewrap.com/matt-gaetzs-feud-with-ron-perlman-leads-to-a-backfired-insult/




Now that’s how you use a Sons Of Anarchy reference! As if this story couldn’t get any weirder, Matt Gaetz got some backing from another Trump backer – Ted Cruz. Yes, Mr. Machine Gun Bacon managed to insert himself in between the beef with Matt Gaetz and Ron Perlman, and offered to turn this free for all into an actual free for all! Because if there’s one social media faux pas you don’t commit, it’s that you don’t take sides in a beef!

What starts with soccer, ends with wrestling and lasts the better part of three days? That would be Ron Perlman’s recent Twitter feud with Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Matt Gaetz.

Among the edgy vocabulary in the poo-flinging contest: “racial justice warrior,” “wokeness,” “gerrymandered,” “triggered,” “dog whistles,” “white supremacy” and more, along with some really choice profanity. It hardly gets more Twitter-esque among the verified-account crowd.

“Sons of Anarchy” actor Perlman and Gaetz, a Florida Republican, clashed on Saturday after President Trump reweeted a Thursday tweet from Gaetz shading the U.S. Soccer Federation’s decision Wednesday to roll back a 2017 regulation requiring players to stand during the national anthem.

“I’d rather the US not have a soccer team than have a soccer team that won’t stand for the National Anthem,” Gaetz tweeted. “You shouldn’t get to play under our flag as our national team if you won’t stand when it is raised.”
https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2020-06-15/ron-perlman-tangles-with-sen-ted-cruz-rep-matt-gaetz-on-twitter




First rule of Twitter beefs, you do not talk about Twitter beefs! Oh and by the way in case you think Matt Gaetz couldn’t possibly get any dumber, I love that he shared this photo of him with another guy and attempts to explain that the other guy is his adopted son. And no, I can guarantee no one was wondering if this guy was his adopted son.

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) announced he has an adopted Cuban teenage son the day after a heated exchange with Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.), in which the Democratic lawmaker invoked his experience raising a black son as a reason for pushing for strong police reform.

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) announced he has an adopted Cuban teenage son the day after a heated exchange with Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.), in which the Democratic lawmaker invoked his experience raising a black son as a reason for pushing for strong police reform.

The jousting took place during the House Judiciary Committee markup of police reform legislation offered by Democrats. The bill would ban chokeholds, mandate body cameras, make lynching a federal crime, prohibit no-knock warrants in drug cases and establish a federal registry of officers accused of misconduct. Gaetz opposes the bill.

Gaetz reacted at the Wednesday night hearing in anger after Richmond said “as a black male ... who was a victim of excessive force, who has a black son, who has worries that you all don’t, and to my colleagues, especially the ones that keep introducing amendments that are a tangent and a distraction from what we’re talking about, you all are white males.”

Gaetz initially sought to turn the discussion about law enforcement into a question of whether the two lawmakers could equally relate to the fear of police brutality happening to their children on a personal level.
https://thehill.com/homenews/house/503608-gaetz-tweets-photo-of-teenage-adopted-son-after-hearing-battle





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[font size="8"]Donald Trump
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So Donald J. Trump is worried about his mental health? Well, it’s good that he’s finally addressing the real problem. Well, the DSM defines narcissism and egomaniacism as a “a grandiose sense of self-importance”. And no one feels the need to gratify himself with pictures of himself than our 45th president, Donald J. Trump. But before we get into the meat of this entry, let’s take a look at what happened after the Tulsa rally. This definitely fits that definition of having a need to constantly satisfy himself!

According to a report from Business Insider, when President Trump’s advisors looked out at the rows of empty seats before his rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, this past weekend, they began “frantically texting friends and supporters who lived nearby in a late bid to fill the indoor arena’s 19,000 seats.”

According to one Trump staffer, they wished Air Force had turned around in mid-air in order to save Trump any embarrassment.

“Ultimately, Trump went through with his 2020 campaign’s big return rally in Oklahoma after months in a COVID-19 quarantine lockdown, empty seats and all,” Business Insider reports. “None of the eight Trump advisers interviewed by Insider had positive things to say about an event that has since sparked all manner of soul-searching and finger-pointing as the president’s campaign looks to find its footing against presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden with a little more than four months to go until Election Day.”

According to the report, a “big shakeup” in the Trump campaign is likely due to the debacle.
https://www.rawstory.com/2020/06/trumps-aides-wanted-air-force-one-turned-around-in-mid-air-to-spare-him-embarrassment-of-low-tulsa-turnout-report/




Turning around Air Force One so you can have an admiring crowd that was the size you were originally told it was, even though no one showed up? Oh you better believe that’s a paddlin! So in addition to narcissism, he also has an unprecedented rage disorder. Yes, he is one very angry mofo. And man is he pissed off at something. Though no one really knows what he is pissed off at! He’s so angry he doesn’t know what he is angry at!

At West Point, President Trump gave a commencement speech. During the speech, he attempted to drink a glass of water using his right hand, then appeared to need the support of his left hand to tip the glass to his mouth. This is not the first time Trump has been witnessed needing to use two hands to use a glass or bottle of water, as seen in November 2017. In February 2016, a right-handed grip was sufficient for Trump to drink a bottle of water. In that incident, he ridiculed Marco Rubio for using a water bottle during a speech. Trump flung a water bottle with his right hand, purposefully spilling water, and then drank from the bottle using only his right hand.

When exited the stage, he had a halting gait as he descended a ramp. For the last three steps, he increased his pace somewhat. The difficulty Trump is possibly having walking down a ramp caused much speculation in the press.

Trump tweeted, “The ramp I descended after my West Point Commencement [sic] speech was very long & steep, had no handrail, and most importantly, was very slippery. The last thing I was going to do is “fall” for the Fake News to have fun with. Final ten feet I ran down to level ground. Momentum!”

By tweeting about his gait, Trump drew even more attention to it. From the video footage, it appears that the point at which Trump “speeds up” is not ten feet. The motion does not qualify as “running.” Maggie Haberman of The New York Times wrote that Trump’s tweet “offered a description that did not match the visuals.”
https://www.forbes.com/sites/stephaniesarkis/2020/06/15/questions-continue-about-president-trumps-health/#3c210a661468




So really Trump is a narcissist and a rage-a-holic. Does that sound like anyone? Well it could describe Homer Simpson, or it could describe one of my favorite TV characters of all time, George Costnaza. Yes, Trump is a real life George Costanza. He’s one of the most deceitful, depraved minds known to mankind, and that’s not a good thing! At least George Costanza was funny, Trump is serious.

President Donald Trump's ardent defense of his unsteady-appearing descent down a ramp this weekend at the US Military Academy thrust questions about his physical condition back to the fore.

In a tweet, Trump insisted the slope was "very long & steep, had no handrail and, most importantly, was very slippery," though it had not rained beforehand and others were seen walking normally down the decline.

During the same event, the awkward way Trump sipped water from a glass also raised questions. Trump appeared to have difficulty lifting his right arm to his mouth, so he used his left hand to push the bottom of the glass higher.

Trump did not address the water glass episode on Twitter, defending instead the way he cautiously took to the ramp alongside West Point superintendent Lt. Gen. Darryl Williams. He said that slipping down the ramp would have been disastrous.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/15/politics/donald-trump-health-ramp-water/index.html




Yes, come on down to the wacky shack, Trump! You think that’s bad, you should climb up Bart and Milhouse’s stairs! But just like Elon Musk’s tweets, a Trump rage can cause mass speculation around the world and tank some stocks! Be careful what you wish for, guys! Seriously, this guy is bonkers, and he’s definitely not well – physically or mentally.

The White House released the results of President Donald Trump's annual physical on Wednesday, largely to a ho-hum reception.

Yes, Trump gained a pound from last year and, yes, that gives him a Body Mass Index of 30.5, meaning he is technically "obese." On a more positive note, Trump's cholesterol dropped to 167 -- down from 196 in 2019 and an unhealthy 223 in 2018.

"There were no findings of significance or changes to report," White House physician Sean Conley wrote in a memo detailing the results of the physical.

What the coverage of this seemingly humdrum health report overlooks is this fundamental reality: We know less about Trump's medical history than almost any president (or even most presidential candidates) of the modern era. And that fact is made all the more remarkable by the fact that Trump is the oldest president ever elected to a first term.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/04/politics/donald-trump-physical-health/index.html





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[font size="8"]Top 10 Investigates: American Unhappiness Index

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It’s time to investigate beyond the headlines. This is Top 10 Investigates!



Are you happy? It’s nearly impossible to find happiness in the year 2020. Because while Americans strive for happiness, a lot of dreams and realities have been squashed by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has turned world economies upside down and disrupted supply chains all over the globe. While the need for personal material possessions has diminished, that doesn’t necessarily make people happy. And in this year 2020, a year that has been met by Coronavirus turmoil and protests and looting following the death of George Floyd, people are finding that Americans are the unhappiest they’ve ever been in the last 50 years, and that is an easy prediction to make.

It’s been a rough year for the American psyche. Folks in the U.S. are more unhappy today than they’ve been in nearly 50 years.

This bold — yet unsurprising — conclusion comes from the COVID Response Tracking Study, conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago. It finds that just 14% of American adults say they’re very happy, down from 31% who said the same in 2018. That year, 23% said they’d often or sometimes felt isolated in recent weeks. Now, 50% say that.

The survey, conducted in late May, draws on nearly a half-century of research from the General Social Survey, which has collected data on American attitudes and behaviors at least every other year since 1972. No less than 29% of Americans have ever called themselves very happy in that survey.

Most of the new survey’s interviews were completed before the death of George Floyd touched off nationwide protests and a global conversation about race and police brutality, adding to the feelings of stress and loneliness Americans were already facing from the coronavirus outbreak — especially for black Americans.
https://apnews.com/0f6b9be04fa0d3194401821a72665a50




Can the happiness index be improved? Well there’s many ways that this could happen, or it could not happen. But what about another factor of unhappiness – loneliness? The pandemic has also created an epidemic of loneliness, as more and more Americans experience being alone while unable to congregate in groups of any size because of the severity of the virus.

Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?

Turns out people in the U.S. are unhappier today than they’ve been in nearly 50 years, and about twice as many Americans report being lonely today as in 2018.

So concludes a study conducted by NORC — the National Opinion Research Center — at the University of Chicago. It finds that just 14% of American adults say they’re very happy, down from 31% who said the same in 2018. No fewer than 29% of Americans have ever called themselves very happy in the survey before this year.

Fifty percent also say they’d often or sometimes felt isolated in recent weeks, up from 23% who said that in 2018. And 45% say they sometimes or often have felt a lack of companionship, as compared to 27% in 2018.

This lends credence to the notion discussed in mental health care circles about a “loneliness epidemic.”
https://www.greensboro.com/opinion/editorials/our-opinion-an-unhappy-nation/article_97301493-5847-5eba-81c3-93de677e5019.html




That’s about what it is like anymore in a world without sports, concerts, restaurants, or gatherings of any kind. But there is an underlying hidden danger of the pandemic that’s not being discussed, and that is a mental health crisis. The pandemic has created separation anxiety and depression, among other illnesses that can be caused mentally as well as physically. But it is getting harder to cope with the outside world.

Health care workers who we all appreciate very much are at risk for developing lingering effects, including post traumatic stress disorder. Many are very exhausted and struggling with the deaths of patients and colleagues.

USA Today said that studies were conducted to better understand how Americans are coping during this unprecedented time, with millions sickened and more than 120,000 dead in a pandemic.

And then add to that, anti-racism protests happening all over the country and an economy in shambles after its longest expansion in history.

More than 70% of Americans in the APA report said this is the lowest point in the nation's history they can remember.

One expert said that when people are overwhelmed and when stressors exceed your ability to handle them, it is much harder to cope and address the concerns in day to day living.

Read More: Mental Health Crisis in the United States | https://wbckfm.com/mental-health-crisis-in-the-united-states/?utm_source=tsmclip&utm_medium=referral




Yes, do the happy dance! Although be careful what you wish for, because even in the happiest country in the entire world – the Scandinavian country of Finland, even they have their issues. But don’t let this news get you down. Instead use it because while you might think things are bad now, they can almost always be worse.

Finland was No. 1 out of 156 countries on the 2019 “World Happiness Report,” followed by Denmark, Norway, Iceland, the Netherlands and Switzerland. The U.S. trailed at No. 19. The top countries ranked highly on all the main factors found to support happiness: caring, freedom, generosity, honesty, health, income and good governance.

“Governments set the institutional and policy framework in which individuals, businesses and governments themselves operate,” the authors wrote. “The links between the government and happiness operate in both directions: What governments do affects happiness and, in turn, the happiness of citizens in most countries determines what kind of governments they support.”

The “World Happiness Report” polled 1,000 residents per country by research organization Gallup. Where necessary, Gallup seeks the permissions of national, regional and local governments. “Happier people are not only more likely to engage in politics and vote, but are also more likely to vote for incumbent parties,” the report concluded. The report is produced by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network in partnership with the Ernesto Illy Foundation.

Finland also ranks at the top of the Organization for Economic Cooperation’s “Better Life Index” in education, skills, subjective well-being, and it ranks above average for income and wealth, jobs and earnings, health status, environmental quality, personal security, social connections, housing and work-life balance but below in civic engagement. They rate their general life satisfaction 7.6 out of 10, considerably higher than the OECD average of 6.5, the Paris-based research body said.
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/people-reach-their-lowest-depth-of-misery-at-50-but-life-improves-after-that-heres-why-2020-01-13




That’s it for Top 10 Investigates. Good day.



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[font size="8"]Holy Shit
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Gather around my fair brothers and sisters! It’s time to take a seat in the pew and pass the collection plate, for the Holy Church Of The Top 10 has convened and it’s time to remind you that the holiest among us are the most full of:



My fair congregation! You know when the actual, real-life churches aren’t congregating in public, I have to say we’re getting starved for material here. But you know my one rule here is that I never, under any circumstances mention the unholy, ungodly Dark One, by name! For he is the DEVIL himself, and he is out of control! While most of us were marveling at what was going on in Tulsa, here’s why people still showed up anyways! Because he is the preacher, and his sermons are a lot like church. But what really disturbs me is that my brothers and sisters on the right think of him like some sort of GAWD. Well there’s only one GAWD and I’m pretty sure that he wouldn’t like people praying in his name, and it says so right in our Good Book!

Yusif Jones, standing in front of a long row of porta-potties, slides his plastic Trump mask over his face. “I’m him!” he exclaims. He puffs up his chest in his homemade Trump shirt. It’s a short-sleeved American flag pullover, onto which he has ironed black felt letters across vertical red and white stripes: GOT TRUMP? Then he flashes the O.K. sign, a silver ring on his pinky. “I’m him, dude!”

For Trump supporters like Jones, the O.K. sign—thumb meeting index finger, three fingers splayed—is a kind of secret handshake. It began as a joke—a “hoax” meant to trick liberals into believing that the raised fingers actually represent the letters WP: white power. The joke worked so well that it became real. Now, in certain circles, O.K. does mean white power—unless you say it doesn’t. Jones, a big, vein-popping, occasionally church-going white man burdened with what he calls an “Islamic” name by his hippie mother, revels in this kind of coded message, a sense of possessing knowledge shared only by a select few. It’s Möbius strip politics, Trumpism’s defining oxymoron: a populist elite, a mass movement of “free thinkers” all thinking the same thing. They love Trump because he makes them feel like insiders even as they imagine him their outsider champion. That’s what’s drawn Jones here, to the CenturyLink Center in Bossier City, Louisiana, two weeks before Thanksgiving. Like many of the president’s 14,000 followers waiting for the rally to begin, Jones believes that Trump is on a mission from God to expose (and destroy) the hidden demons of the deep state.

To attend a Trump rally is to engage directly in the ecstasy of knowing what the great man knows, divinity disguised as earthly provocation. Jones tells me about Jesse Lee Peterson, a right-wing pastor and talk show host who calls Trump “the Great White Hope.” He doubles over and slaps his knee, signaling to me that it’s another joke. “He’s black!” says Jones, meaning Jesse Lee Peterson. “I love that dude,” he says. He considers Peterson, like the White Hope himself, awesomely witty. Jones straightens up. “But it’s true!” he adds. Which is how racism works at a Trump rally, just like the president’s own trolling—signal, disavowal, repeat; the ugly words followed by the claim that it was just a joke followed by a repetition of the ugly words. Joking! Not joking. Play it again, until the ironic becomes the real.
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/06/inside-the-cult-of-trump-his-rallies-are-church-and-he-is-the-gospel




You know we here at the Holy Church Of The Top 10 tend to pick on Christianity a lot, mainly because of their absorbance of super far right talking points and ideals, but we welcome all ideals and faiths, even scary death cults! So just how much has the party of he who shall not be named become a death cult in the last few years? Way more than you will ever know! And I’m sure that it’s something that the good LAWRD JAYSUS would not approve of!

Has Trumpism become a cult?

The question almost feels like a provocation. And yet more and more people, like veteran Republican strategist John Weaver, are comfortable saying, “Yes.”

Famed CBS anchor Dan Rather made the case most recently on the CNN show Reliable Sources. Even former Trump White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci has likened Donald Trump supporters to a cult.

It’s a provocative claim that I’m not sure is entirely convincing. On one hand, there is something cult-like about the hold Trump has over his supporters and the Republican Party. At the same time, calling it a cult seems too easy, a way of avoiding a much scarier truth about our politics — namely, that Trump isn’t all that exceptional.

A new book by cult expert Steven Hassan, called The Cult of Trump, is the first serious attempt to argue that Trumpism is a cult. Hassan has studied cults for years and is himself a former member of the “Moonies” cult, an offshoot of the Unification Church of the United States led by Sun Myung Moon that made headlines in 1970s.
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/12/13/20992370/trump-republican-party-cult-steven-hassan




The thing with cults is that you can’t question dear leader, and you almost certainly can’t go against their core line of thinking. And that’s kind of what we do here, especially when I used to do these things in front of live audiences. Yes, these people are cults and yes they are dangerous. And the idea of a death cult has taken on a whole new meaning. So should you join this church?

Under furious pressure, President Trump is now backing off his push to quickly reopen the U.S. economy, and has instead agreed to extend the federal government’s strict social-distancing guidelines through at least the end of April.

This is being widely portrayed as a surrender — to facts, data and scientific realities that Trump tried to make disappear, before finally accepting that his magical reality-bending powers only go so far.

Which provides an occasion to suggest a deep reset in the language we’re using to describe the extraordinary dereliction of leadership we’re seeing from Trump, and from those officials around the country who have followed his lead.

By now, you’ve probably heard media figures claim that the stark differences between public officials over the true nature and scale of the coronavirus threat are rooted in “tribalism” or “polarization.”

These differences represent a “deepening partisan divide,” a new Associated Press piece reports, adding: “The divergent approaches are evidence that not even a global pandemic can bridge the gaping political divisions of the Trump era.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/30/cult-trump-is-threat-untold-numbers-american-lives/




No you don’t want to do that sir, because cults are EVIL! And they are most certainly not something that the good LAWRD JAYSUS would approve of! Because in a cult, you cannot question Dear Leader, nor can you question his motives, or anything else he does. But this leader commands a cult that encompasses 45 million people and he is determined to get rid of them. Funny, I don’t remember JAYSUS being a genocidal maniac!

In a press conference earlier this week, President Donald Trump falsely claimed his authority as president is "total." A cult expert said the assertion could be taken right out of the "cult leader playbook."

"When somebody's the president of the United States, the authority is total," he said during Monday's press briefing about the novel coronavirus — specifically about lifting social distancing measures. "And that's the way it's got to be."

Both state governors and legal scholars were quick to point out that the US Constitution gives Trump no such powers. In fact, as Business Insider previously wrote, "The 10th Amendment delegates 'police powers' to the states to regulate behavior during public-health crises."

Steven Hassan, a licensed mental health counselor, cult expert, and author of a book called "The Cult of Trump," told Insider that what he heard in Trump's Monday rhetoric was reminiscent of a classic cult leader.
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-coronavirus-total-authority-like-cult-leader-expert-2020-4




Probably not, but if you find yourself praying for this madman, you might be in one! Mass has ended, may you go in peace! That’s it this week for:




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[font size="8"]How Is This NOT A Thing: Juneteenth Holiday
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It’s time once again to ask:



This week: Juneteenth as a national holiday. How is this *NOT* a thing? In a time when systematic racism is an endemic, it seems that people are finally waking up to the atrocities being committed by America’s law enforcement. This problem has been going on for well over 40 years and does not show any signs of ending any time soon. However, Americans now want to recognize one day that should be a national holiday – the day that most mark the official end of slavery, June 19th, 1865. Known as “Juneteenth”, this has been the day that slaves were freed and also in 1921, the day of a deadly massacre in Tulsa, Oklahoma. But as the plight of African Americans in the 21st century continues – in an era dominated by abusive police forces, many are recognizing the importance of Juneteenth.

Just more than half of Americans said they knew about Juneteenth, a date commemorating the end of slavery in the U.S., and even more – two-thirds – support making it a holiday, according to The Harris Poll.

President Trump took credit Thursday for making Juneteenth "very famous" after postponing until Saturday a politically rally in Tulsa, Okla.

However, this new Harris Poll, out Friday, found that 22% of Americans said they were “very” aware of the date, while 30% said they were “somewhat” aware, according to the poll of a nationally representative survey of 1,963 U.S. adults was taken June 13-15.

One-third (33%) were "not at all aware," and 15% were “not very aware," according to the findings.

Juneteenth marks the date – June 19, 1865 – when Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and declared "that all persons held as slaves" had been freed by the Emancipation Proclamation issued in September of 1862 and effective Jan. 1, 1863. Some enslavers ignored the order until the Union troops arrived to enforce it, according to Juneteenth.com.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2020/06/19/juneteenth-official-holiday-americans-harris-poll/3221973001/




That is a good question sir because even we don’t know! Now the idea of making Juneteenth a national holiday is not a new idea. But it is the first time since the days of Martin Luther King Jr that this idea has been. But of course while Trump is president, we can’t have nice things. Because while we’re protesting and raging at the injustices being done, Trump is bragging about how he took credit for the idea of making it a national holiday.

After firing off a pair of racially insensitive tweets the night before, President Donald Trump on Friday marked Juneteenth, a holiday that celebrates the end of slavery, with a written statement calling on Americans to commit "to live true to our highest ideals."

He chose not to say anything in public on a day that had taken on new significance in a nation roiled by racial tension over police killings of African American men, even though just days earlier, he falsely took credit for making the holiday "very famous."

He made the claim after getting blowback for scheduling a campaign rally on Juneteenth following weeks of protests calling for racial justice after the death of George Floyd.

Then, on Friday morning, he tweeted a threat against any protesters who showed up at the rally, now scheduled for Saturday in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the site of one of nation's worse race massacres.
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/racially-divisive-tweets-trump-quiet-juneteenth-holiday-claims/story?id=71345439




Actually yes that really was racist. But the biggest hurdle to Juneteenth becoming a national holiday isn’t your state or local government. The biggest hurdle? Your employer. Who might not like it if you take a non-sanctioned day off. Which of course spells out the underlying irony of making Juneteenth a national holiday. Just look at what Tesla wanted to do with its’ employees on making the day a national holiday – you won’t get the time off if you request it!

On Friday morning, Tesla’s US employees received an email from Valerie Workman, the company’s head of North American human resources. She wrote that “Tesla fully supports Juneteenth for any US employee that wants to take the day off to celebrate.”

That was followed by another clarifying email from Tesla’s HR: “This is an unpaid PTO and excused absence.”

Tesla workers were confused by the message. Some were already at work by the time they received the first email, and one, who spoke with BuzzFeed News, felt it was “pointless.” The company was recognizing Juneteenth, a holiday celebrating the liberation of slaves in the United States, while telling workers they either had to take a vacation day or take the day off and not be paid.

With a national awakening to the need for racial justice following the police killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and other Black Americans, corporations have taken different approaches to voice their support. Some have declared “Black Lives Matter” and committed funds and resources, while others have moved to recognize Juneteenth as a holiday.

Tesla and SpaceX, both helmed by billionaire Elon Musk, have taken a different approach.
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ryanmac/tesla-musk-juneteenth-holiday-unpaid-spacex




That’s about the maximum amount of time that your employer will not allow you to take off. So how do you make Juneteenth a national holiday? There’s an easy way to get the public on board with this idea, and that’s advertising! Yes, some catchy, creative advertising with big billboards and some catchy TV jingles should do the trick! That’s exactly how you change minds in the 21st century!

Despite its immense historical significance, Juneteenth—the day Union soldiers arrived Galveston, Texas in 1865 and the nation’s last enslaved people were read the Emancipation Proclamation and learned of their freedom—is not a national holiday. A group of Bay Area creatives is working to change that.

Earlier this year, Miles Dotson, Quinnton Harris and Brian Watson came together to form HellaCreative as a way to foster and build community amid the coronavirus pandemic. Around two weeks ago, the group was reflecting on all the trauma in the wake of the racism-fueled killings of Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and others.

“We were unearthing these feelings and we thought, ‘Why don’t we try to reclaim some of our joy and why we got together in the first place?'” Harris said.

The started asking why Juneteenth wasn’t celebrated nationwide, which became the genesis for the HellaJuneteenth project. “We decided we were going to put a flag in the ground, take off that day and try to reclaim our Black joy,” Harris said, adding, “The #HellaJuneteenth project was about how do we move forward from the conversation of trauma and rediscover the joy that has always been with us in our culture.”
https://www.adweek.com/agencies/creative-collective-juneteenth-national-holiday/




So employer difficulty and not enough advertising. That’s enough to make you ask – the Juneteenth National Holiday:




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[font size="8"]Conspiracy Corner: You Dang K-Pop Fans!!
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Welcome back to the segment where we bring you the latest in batshit crazy, Conspiracy Corner! We are broadcasting live from the darkest regions of your innermost thoughts from an underground bunker in the remote badlands of Arizona! Because where else other than the middle of the desert that we can broadcast without the government interfering with our thoughts? Well true, an Iowa cornfield would be a somewhat nicer climate. But just let me adjust my tin foil hat for maximum government interference… ah there we go! So what’s the latest coming from the minds of America’s conspiracy theorists? Trump’s Tulsa rally. And the extremely poor attendance has the rumors and conspiracies flying!

They've helped South Korean stars dominate charts and break records on social media.

Now, some K-pop fans are claiming another victory: helping foil United States President Donald Trump's return to the campaign trail.

Ahead of his Saturday night rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Trump bragged that he had about 1 million RSVPs. But when the arena didn't even reach its 19,000-person capacity, many people online were quick to give K-pop fans and TikTok users at least partial credit for the low turnout.
Prior to the rally, people on social media platforms TikTok and Twitter encouraged people to register to attend Trump's event -- and not attend. One video, with more than 300,000 views, called on fans of South Korean mega group BTS in particular to join the trolling campaign.

Following the rally, Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted at Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale, telling him he had been "rocked" by teens on TikTok flooding the Trump campaign with fake ticket reservations. "Kpop allies, we see and appreciate your contributions in the fight for justice too," she added.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/22/asia/k-pop-fandom-activism-intl-hnk/index.html




That’s right – fans of the KPOP band BTS are the ones behind the sabotage! Or are they? Maybe they’re paid operatives by liberal billionaire George Soros! But even the Trump campaign itself is not buying into that conspiracy theory! Remember last week when Trump’s campaign manager Brad Pascale said that they had almost a million tickets reserved? Well, the opposite happened.

In public, the Trump campaign has adamantly denied reports that legions of TikTokers and K-pop fans helped tank President Donald Trump's big rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday.

"Leftists and online trolls doing a victory lap, thinking they somehow impacted rally attendance, don't know what they're talking about or how our rallies work," Brad Parscale, the Trump campaign manager, said in a statement on Sunday.

"Registering for a rally means you've RSVPed with a cell phone number and we constantly weed out bogus numbers, as we did with tens of thousands at the Tulsa rally, in calculating our possible attendee pool," he said.

But behind the scenes, campaign officials anonymously told The New York Times that many people who had signed up to attend the rally were not real Trump supporters but online tricksters, adding that they likely helped inflate expectations.
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-tulsa-rally-campaign-officials-admit-tiktok-kpop-fans-2020-6




So once again, Trump proves he is the great flip flopper! But the question remains – did Trump’s rally intentionally tank or is he entering the Spinal Tap phase of his career? Well that remains to be seen. But this isn’t the first time KPOP fans have attempted to meddle in American politics. Their gods, the band BTS, have also taken sides with Black Lives Matter. Ooh, I can see conservatives burning BTS merchandise right now!

In addition to being quite possibly the most devoted fan base in the world, K-Pop lovers clearly have much better organisational skills than the rest of us. Since the Black Lives Matter movement experienced a resurgence following the death of George Floyd, K-Pop stans have flooded the #WhiteLivesMatter hashtag with images of their favourite musicians, blocking out racist posts in the process – while BTS’s followers have raised more than a million dollars for BLM after the band tweeted out its support for the movement (and made its own sizeable donation to boot).

The K-pop vigilantes latest effort? Derailing a Trump rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in defiance of white supremacy. President Trump’s campaign manager Brad Parscale had projected that the 19,000-seat BOK Center would be full (with overflowing crowds lining up outside) on 20 June, but in reality, less than 7,000 people turned up – forcing the President to cancel an additional planned speech. It appears K-Pop fans (and Alt TikTok users) had reserved tickets to the event with no intention of going, considerably skewing Parscale’s numbers. Notably, the rally had been widely criticised by supporters of BLM – who cited the historical significance of Juneteenth and the devastating Tulsa Race Massacre as reasons for it not to go ahead.

Taking to Twitter, Parscale claimed the low turnout was due to “radical protestors” who had “blocked access to metal detectors, preventing people from entering”, but the likes of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez were quick to contradict him. “Actually you just got ROCKED by teens on TikTok who flooded the Trump campaign w/ fake ticket reservations & tricked you into believing a million people wanted your white supremacist open mic enough to pack an arena during COVID,” the Democratic congresswoman replied. “KPop allies, we see and appreciate your contributions in the fight for justice too.”
https://www.vogue.co.uk/news/article/k-pop-fans-trump-rally




Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!! Put a warning label on that thing! Please!!! So how did they do this you might ask? Well, the Trump administration said that you could reserve as many tickets as you want, and they artificially inflated the numbers! DUN DUN DUN!!!!!!!!!!! Oh yeah and you can bet Trump himself is seething with anger, as this one hit him where it hurts! And they would have got away with it too if not for those meddling kids!

TikTok users and fans of Korean pop music took partial credit for inflating attendance expectations at a less-than-full arena at President Donald Trump's first political rally in months, held in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday.

Social media users on platforms including the popular video-sharing app have said they completed the free online registration for the rally with no intention of going.

Prior to the event, Trump's campaign manager Brad Parscale said there had been more than one million requests to attend. However, the 19,000-seat BOK Centre arena had many empty seats on Saturday evening and Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence cancelled speeches to an expected "overflow" area outside.

The Tulsa Fire Department tallied the crowd at about 6200 people.

Trump's campaign advisers had seen the rally as a way to rejuvenate his base and demonstrate support when opinion polls have shown him trailing his Democratic rival, former vice-president Joe Biden.

Oklahoma has reported a surge in new coronavirus cases, and the state's Department of Health had warned those planning on attending the event that they faced an increased risk of catching the virus.
https://www.theage.com.au/world/north-america/how-tiktok-users-k-pop-fans-say-they-sabotaged-trump-s-rally-20200622-p554sc.html





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[font size="8"]I Need A Drink: Return To Filming
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Good freaking god everyone, time is slow, and I could really use a drink!



Of course you know the idea behind this is that we have some drinks and discuss literally anything in the news as long as it doesn’t relate to politics. Of course that’s hard because in a world where there’s nothing to talk about, you got to come up with something! And of course right now CDC guidelines prohibit me from having a bartender so I must discuss it with my virtual bartender. Tell me, virtual bartender, what goes well with a story about movies? Buzz Cola? No thanks, I need something much stronger than that, Jack Daniels mixed with Jack Daniels. So with movie production finally resuming after 4 months, how is that going to look? Well, it’s quite insane.

Film and television production may be able to resume in California on June 12, but major studios are still weeks — if not months — away from rolling cameras.

Before shooting can start or resume on movies and TV shows, the various labor unions that represent everyone from the grips to the actors to the directors, have to sign off on safety procedures for how sets should operate in the age of coronavirus. Nearly 200 people from across the entertainment industry were involved in drafting a white paper outlining new safety protocols that range from increasing testing and temperature tests to quarantining casts and crews. Insiders predict that the final sign-off on those plans is between four to six weeks away.

“For the major film productions and a handful of premium TV shows, this pandemic was like tranquilizing an elephant,” said one top film studio executive, speaking on the condition of anonymity. “We’re not going to be able to stand up right away.”

Even if the government declares that sets can re-open in Los Angeles, the movie and television business has become so global in scope that sources at the studios believe it will take time before most productions resume. In Los Angeles, Warner Bros. was half-way through shooting “King Richard,” the story of Richard Williams, father and coach of tennis players Venus and Serena Williams, which stars Will Smith. Some of the major tennis scenes still have to shoot.
https://variety.com/2020/film/news/hollywood-film-production-resumes-avatar-mission-impossible-king-richard-1234629324/




Yup, just like the ending of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, thanks to Coronavirus, America is experiencing threats which we have never seen before! Don’t applaud that. So what will be the first movie being produced under these super strict new guidelines? It’s the sequel to Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Jurassic World: Dominion. Yeah I don’t need to see a movie about threats to humanity when I’m already living in one, thanks!

Producers at the film’s set in Pinewood Studios have constructed a smart drive-thru corona check, which will see top names including Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard and Jeff Goldblum given a once-over before being allowed to go face-to-face with prehistoric beasts.

A source tells me: “This is the future of movies and hopefully it can prove successful. We need to get these productions back on track and fast.“There are millions of pounds at stake, and it’s going to take months to catch up so this solution seems a good way to put minds at rest.

“Everyone on set, from the runners to the leading stars, will have to drive through the testing station — and only those who pass the checks will be allowed on set.

“One person showing symptoms somewhere like this could be totally catastrophic.”

Jurassic Park is one of the most successful film franchises of the last three decades and its sixth outing, titled Jurassic World: Dominion, was due to be released in June 2021. But production was stopped on March 13 in response to the pandemic.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/tvandshowbiz/11927576/jurassic-world-bosses-coronavirus-test-centre-film-return/




Oh man do I miss being able to drink in a bar. But yeah just like Trump’s rally in Tulsa, this has the potential to be a really bad idea. How bad? Well if one person gets the infection the entire staff, crew, and actors could be affected as well. And that has the potential to be a colossal shit show! So where can we film? Well, since every superhero movie takes place at a carnival or a fair, how about an actual fair?

“Lights … camera … mask on … action!”

Directors might be using these words soon to begin production on movies, television, and music videos following a three-month shutdown of filming caused by the coronavirus pandemic. On Wednesday, June 10, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and the Department of Public Health announced that crews could resume filming on Friday, June 12.

But with that decision came a lengthy list of safety protocols that must be implemented, meaning it’s unlikely filming will ramp up right away. A more realistic start time for productions, according to industry watchers, is July, August or even early fall.

With filming allowed to resume, location scouts are now looking for filming places to shoot. One of the first available and best suited to operate under the county’s new safety regulations may be Fairplex in Pomona, which has been the setting for several movie, television and music productions.

At Fairplex, where the economic fallout of the coronavirus and related closures led to the cancellation of the Los Angeles County Fair and other events, the return of film crews is seen as an economic godsend.
https://www.dailybulletin.com/2020/06/17/fairplex-in-pomona-ready-to-take-center-stage-as-film-production-resumes/




Man I needed that! So what do actual movie stars think of this strict return-to-sort-of-normal? Well let’s ask the star of Jurassic World herself, Bryce Dallas Howard! Sure, Universal may be going “above and beyond” but one little slip up and bam! You’re fucked. Because right now the virus is in charge and until it goes away we’re all going to have to play by its’ rules for now.

Jurrassic World: Dominion star Bryce Dallas Howard has spoken about the film’s imminent return to production amid rigorous Covid security measures.

We revealed earlier this week that production is gearing back up on the Universal blockbuster with cameras set to roll in early July. The film is on course to be the first major movie to re-start filming in the UK – and among the first in the world – since the pandemic struck.

Universal has implemented rigorous safety protocols, which will cost in the region of $5M, we understand.

Howard told SiriusXM’s EW Live yesterday: “There has been a lot of communication. They are going above and beyond. We would never be going back to work if we didn’t feel safe. And, you know, we’re taking it one day at a time and I’m very grateful to have a job.”

She continued: “What feels really right about it is that there is this daily conversation, daily communication with all of the actors, all of the key crew members and just us consistently being like, ‘Ok how are we going to do this, how are we going to do this safely,’ and not making compromises that could undermine someone’s health.”
https://deadline.com/2020/06/jurassic-world-bryce-dallas-howard-covid-production-protocols-chris-pratt-universal-1202961413/





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[font size="8"]Road To The White House Ep. 2: Biden Wins Texas?
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Welcome back! This is the segment where we are chronicling the… cue reverb… ROAD TO THE WHITE HOUSE!!! Oh man that was some good reverb there. Yes, Joe Biden is the presumptive nominee for the Democratic ticket, and while we await his choice of VP and the eventual convention, which right now seems like an eternity away, we are putting together the pieces of what his nomination is going to look like. And man does it seem like the public is turning on Trump doesn’t it? But this week a lot of clout seems to be forming around how the impossible could happen in 2020 – Texas could finally, after 40 years, turn blue! It seems like wishful thinking but the virus has really turned people against Trump.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden on Saturday renewed his vow to help flip Texas as the state gets increased attention heading into November.

“Texas is an important battleground state for our campaign in 2020,” he said on Facebook Live addressing the state Democratic Party's convention, which went online-only this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. “I think we have a real chance to turn the state blue because of the work all of you have done.

“We have to keep the House of Representatives. We have to win over the United States Senate. We have to flip the Texas House. We have to lead and deliver meaningful change for people who are hurting all across this nation.”

Biden spoke for roughly five minutes from his back porch in Delaware to close out the state party’s virtual convention. The weeklong event featured a slate of high-profile Democrats that also included House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former Democratic presidential candidates Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, Beto O’Rourke and Julián Castro.
https://www.texastribune.org/2020/06/06/joe-biden-texas-democrats/




Yes, that’s what the average American thinks of people from Texas who are not from Texas. This could be a monumental shift if possible and it will change the politics of Texas forever. While Trump is loudly appearing in public, Biden is quietly flipping Texas due to people’s seething anger over the Coronavirus pandemic. The possibility of flipping Texas seems like a pipe dream, but is it reality?

Back in 2016, Katie Mellor faced a dilemma. A lifelong Republican but a “Never Trumper”, she was forced to hold her nose and vote for Hillary Clinton. It put the nurse from Houston firmly in the minority in the red state of Texas.

“I’d say 99 per cent of the people I know voted for Trump. I lost friends because of it,” said Ms Mellor.

This time round, she has noticed, those same people look to be having a change of heart. “I knew he was lying about what he would do for our country, and I think others have begun to realise that too,” the 39-year-old told The Telegraph.

The latest polling suggests that rather than being an anomaly it speaks to a broader pattern, as discontent grows among President Donald Trump’s once-faithful base in the South....

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/06/12/trumps-texas-faithful-lose-faith-could-lone-star-state-turn/




So now you might ask – what’s Joe Biden’s secret weapon in Texas? Is it people’s animosity toward Trump or is it something else? Well, a little from column A, a little from column B. But his real secret weapon might lie in one of his former competitors, and that’s Beto O’Rourke! Yes, O’Rourke has been a formidable weapon in the Democratic Party, and during this time of lockdown, he is doing his due diligence to get people registered!

Democrats have been working from the ground up to turn Texas blue, so if likely presidential nominee Joe Biden invests resources from his campaign to win the state, it would be the cherry on top of the overall Democratic Party effort.

“I’m going to continue to make the case to him, not that it would be nice, but that it’s necessary,” said former congressman and former 2020 presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke.

“I know that Biden can win here,” O’Rourke continued. “I don’t know what kind of investment he’s going to make, but regardless of what he does, we’re going to put the state in play. The best way for us to make the case is to show what we in Texas are willing to do for ourselves.”

Biden has to determine what kind of resources to pour into Texas, a state that’s trending toward Democrats, but has been under Republican control for more than a generation.

The former vice president on Saturday will address the Texas Democratic Party’s virtual convention, where he’s expected to discuss the importance of the Lone Star State in November’s presidential election.
https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2020/05/29/beto-orourke-local-democrats-urge-joe-biden-to-pour-resources-into-texas-to-knock-out-donald-trump/




Yes, they are definitely compensating for something! Even the Texas Republican party is worried about the possibility of losing Texas. Well guys, we hate to say it, but you did it to yourselves. They definitely aren’t taking November seriously – and I assume that’s because they have to change Trump’s dirty diapers and tell him that mommy loves him. But that would really be something, because if Texas goes, so goes the nation!

Some Texas Republicans are concerned that the Lone Star State could turn blue in November, The Hill reported on Saturday.

Recent polling suggests that President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden are virtually tied in Texas, but the presidential race is not the only contest where that is the case. Republican Sen. John Cornyn is up for reelection this year and he has to fend off a formidable Democratic challenger.

According to veteran Republican Party operative Bill Miller, “it is a very serious moment for Republicans in Texas.

Thanks largely to demographic changes, the Texas Democratic Party has become one of the biggest in the nation. Biden’s campaign reportedly plans on investing significant money and resources in the state.

Republicans seem to have lost ground in suburbia, especially with women and independent voters.

Areas surrounding Austin, San Antonio, Dallas, and Houston now appear to lean Democrat. As longtime Republican strategist Corbin Casteel explained, “the suburbs are a concern because any time your stronghold is showing weakness, it needs to be shored up.”
https://www.inquisitr.com/6110011/republicans-warn-texas-blue/




[font size="4"]Next Week:[/font]

What’s Joe Biden’s status among Evangelicals? Many leaders are urging America’s pulpits to change their affiliation!



See you next week!

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