March 24, 2017

Ryan sought to weaken Trump, and he did.

I believe this bill may have been pushed by Ryan, not because he expected it to become law, but because he knew it would weaken Trump. Hear me out.

I absolutely think Ryan expected that he would be able to get it out of the House, and that it would go on to die a messy death in the Senate. He did himself some some serious damage with this miscalculation by having it die on his own doorstep - BUT - I also think Ryan always knew it would never make it to the Oval Office desk.

This bill was touted, not just by the media, but Trump's own people as a terrific test of his amazing awesome superhuman powers of "The Art of Making the Deal!"TM.

Trump, already weakening fast under the weight of the fallout from his poor impulse control, now looks like an amateur, a patsy, a dope and a complete fraud . . because of course, he is all of those things. But for Trump, the damage goes much deeper than this one bill. The carefully crafted mythology of his prowess as a singular force, a master of negotiation - is now in tatters on floor. He has been exposed as a man who really has no special skills applicable to the complicated demands of governance.

A weak Trump is beneficial to Ryan.

In the short term, Ryan got more fertilizer on himself than he intended, to be sure, but I think the long-term damage to Trump, his weakness now exposed, is far greater.

March 10, 2017

Chaos in South Korea follows impeachment of President - Russia, China stand to gain

http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/10/asia/us-south-korea-impeachment-impact/index.html

Protests erupt in South Korea after impeachment - How South Korea's political turmoil could upend ties with the US

(CNN)The impeachment of President Park Geun-hye will usher in new leadership that could take a vastly different approach to South Korea-US relations.

Will the next leader in Seoul agree with the United States on key issues including North Korea and the placement of a US-built missile defense system on South Korean soil? Or will South Korea favor a shift? Will it seek closer relations with China, its largest trading partner?

State Department spokesman Mark Toner characterized Park's ouster as a "domestic issue on which the United States takes no position." He also stressed the close US ties with South Korea as "a linchpin of regional stability and security."

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is expected to arrive in Seoul next week.

What comes next

With Park's ouster, South Korea will hold a snap election within 60 days in what is guaranteed be a campaign frenzy. Opinion polls so far show the left-leaning Moon Jae-in, who lost to Park in 2012, as the front-runner.

Liberals in South Korea typically favor a more conciliatory approach with Pyongyang, and many oppose the US missile defense system known as the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, which is designed to intercept incoming missiles, conceivably from North Korea.

<snip>

"If progressives take power, I do think issues like THAAD and North Korea policy could be on the table, which would have huge consequences for the US right now," said David Kang, director of the University of Southern California's Korean Studies Institute.
After nine years of conservative leadership and a scandal-marred Park presidency, South Korea may be signaling it's ready for a change. The conservatives lost their majority in a shock defeat in parliamentary elections last year. New leadership in Seoul could mark a shift on two key issues in US and South Korea relations -- the missile defense system and the position on North Korea.

THAAD and China: It's complicated

The first pieces of the THAAD defense system arrived this week in South Korea. The project has been fiercely opposed by China and Russia as a threat to their security.

More at link above

-----------------------------------------

So much facepalm in this situation right now. State department remains dark and quiet in the face of this crisis. Tillerson will be traveling into this mess with global implications deliberately leaving the American press behind.

Hmmm. Chaos, Russia, Tillerson and a complete lack of transparency? What could go wrong?

March 10, 2017

Nazi medal-wearing Gorka proclaims: "No persecution based on skin color" in US

First of all, a refresher, this is who we are talking about:

And, oh look. Here he is again. Whitesplaining. He's an immigrant, so therefore there is no racism or bigotry in the United States.

March 10, 2017

Drug that halts Alzheimers, removes amyloid plaques on the horizon

I know the Telegraph is a conservative news source but they had the best article I saw on the drug. The article is from September of 2016, but I missed it at that time. I have also included a link below to clinical trials now underway.

Please, please, let this be the one. The suffering this disease wreaks upon families and lives . . It would be so good to see it end.

Link to clinical trials: https://www.aducanumabclinicaltrials.com/

March 7, 2017

Final update for those who gave to the Corey Baker GoFundMe campaign

I received this communication from a detective in the Richmond Police Department this morning. Funds will be returned to those who gave. I am hurt and saddened that members of our community were taken advantage of, but I am very happy those people will have their funds returned.

DU is a community with a warm and open heart. I hope we will always remain so. While vigilance is always advisable, the shame of being cheated lies with the one who did the cheating. I believe we should thank all those who were kind enough to give for their open spirit, and be happy that their gift is coming back to them.

March 2, 2017

Rep. Devin Nunes in testy presser - Tells media "What if we investigate YOU!"

I don't have a link yet, watched on CNN.


Rep. Devin Nunes (R) California, House Intel Chair gave a very testy news presser today. Tried mightily to avoid talking about Jeff Sessions at all, tried to call it a "disagreement" between some Senators and Jeff Sessions and basically they should get together and hug it out.

He started out fairly even but kind of lost it progressively. I don't think he slept much last night. When asked about the order to preserve documents related to Russia, he pointedly told the press "I suggest you go camp outside their houses and hound them with those questions!"

And then questioned about whether it was appropriate for Beauregard, as a campaign official in a public office to be in contact with the Russians he really flared up.

"I'm sure some of YOU are in contact with the Russian Embassy, be careful what you wish for! Do you want us to conduct an ivestigation into YOU because you were in contact with the Russian Embassy?"


These people are terrified; a bunch of cornered vipers.

February 24, 2017

DFT at CPAC: "It's like - How many elections do we have to have?"

My stomach literally rolled at hearing this line.

Not the first time he's offhandedly expressed the idea of not having elections



or the idea that he might not want to leave the White House.




Here's the thing. If he keeps up this level of fanaticism, his people will support it. Violently, I believe.

These people are not okay.

https://twitter.com/mrsafetyman110/status/832739570630340613

February 23, 2017

Corey Baker gofundme UPDATE plus resources for recovering funds

There have been a few threads on this subject, but I wanted to provide ideas and resources to those who may have given to the Corey Baker GoFundMe (or any suspect campaign) that was solicited here and now appears to have been been intentionally deceptive in nature.

Even if you did not give, you may still be able to help the many kind DU'ers who did give, see their funds returned. DU is a very kind community predisposed to extending our hands to those in need. While of course caution is always prudent, this solicitation was posted under an account that has been active at DU since 2004, and played on the trust we have for one another.

When making a report to gofundme, it may be helpful to include the words "intentionally deceived" or some variation thereof when describing what you feel was done. This is a part of their language in describing what circumstances allow for a refund of money given. You do not need to be a contributor to make a report on a campaign.

Here is a direct link to file a report on the Corey Baker gofundme account: https://www.gofundme.com/contact?t=donation_page_report&url=27-year-old-injured-in-car-accident

Here is a link to file a claim with gofundme for the return of your funds from any gofundme campaign: https://www.gofundme.com/mvc.php?route=contact/form&pid=3349
You will need the URL of the campaign you contributed to. I have included the Corey Baker URL here for anyone who should need it. https://www.gofundme.com/27-year-old-injured-in-car-accident

ALSO: If you give to a charitable fund with a bank card or credit card, and you soon after find the charity to be fraudulent, call the number on the back of your card. Many times customer service will be able to reverse the charges for you without any cost to you.

Some DU'ers have already succeeded in having their funds returned, so this is good news. Although I did not give, it matters to me that the good, kind people who did give see their money returned. It matters to me that something like this does not erode the community and trust we have for one another, so that DU'ers in genuine crisis are still able to get the help they need here.


This post is not intended in any way to pass judgement on the as-of-yet still active account of Corey_Baker08. It is meant only to assist the many good DU'ers who were misled and exploited into giving money under a false pretense with an emotional and manipulative chicane.

----------------------------------------------

UPDATE: I was contacted tonight at 7pm by the Richmond Indiana Police Department, and informed that they will be taking this matter up.

The Facebook account connected to the gofundme in question listed Richmond Police officer Mark Sutton as a friend, which should prove of some value to them.

February 21, 2017

Bigotry against Muslims is bigotry. Your statement and supporting statements are bigoted.

For some reason, you seem to feel there should be some kind of exception for this form of bigotry, but there isn't. It is what it is, and what it is bigotry.

Christians aren't engaging in violent activity in the name of their religion? What a fucking joke that is.



-July 27, 1996: A bomb set by Eric Robert Rudolph, who is affiliated with the "Christian Identity" fundamentalist movement, kills one person at the Atlanta Olympics.

-October 8, 1996: Three "Phineas Priests" — racist and anti-Semitic Christian Identity terrorists who feel they've been called by God to undertake violent attacks — are charged in connection with two bank robberies and bombings at the two banks, a Spokane newspaper and a Planned Parenthood office.

-January 16, 1997: Christian terrorist Eric Rudolph plants two anti-personnel bombs, the second clearly designed to kill arriving law enforcement and rescue workers, outside an abortion clinic in Sandy Springs, Ga. Seven more are injured.

-February 23, 1997: Christian terrorist Eric Rudolph plants a bomb, injuring 5 people at an Atlanta gay bar.

-January 29, 1998: Another bomb set by Rudolph kills a man and terribly maims a nurse at a Birmingham abortion clinic.

-October 23, 1998: With his wife and children nearby, an abortion provider in Amherst, New York is shot and killed by Christian terrorist James Kopp

-July 1, 1999: Brothers Benjamin Matthew Williams and James Tyler Williams, who also have connections to the "Christian Identity" movement, kill a gay couple in their bed in Redding, California.

-July 2-July 5 1999: Christian terrorist Benjamin Nathaniel Smith kills black basketball coach Ricky Byrdsong, a Korean grad student and wounds nine minority victims in a three-day shooting spree.

-August 10, 1999: Christian terrorist Buford Furrow kills a Filipino immigrant after firing 70 shots inside a Jewish community center near Los Angeles.

-September 1, 1999: Anti-abortion Christian extremist Clayton Lee Wagner is arrested in Cincinnati, Ohio after being stopped driving a stolen camper and informing police he was headed to Seattle to murder an abortion provider. He escaped in February 2001 and mailed more than 550 hoax anthrax letters to abortion clinics and posted an Internet threat warning abortion clinic workers that "if you work for the murderous abortionist, I'm going to kill you." He was caught and is currently in prison.

-March 1, 2001: Federal and local law enforcement agents raid the Corbett, Ore., home of Christian extremist Fritz Springmeier, seizing weapons, racist literature and marijuana-growing equipment. They also find a binder notebook entitled “Army of God, Yahweh’s Warriors” containing what officials call a list of targets that include a local federal building and the FBI’s Oregon offices. Springmeier is charged with setting off a diversionary bomb at an adult video store in Damascus, Ore., in 1997 as part of a bank robbery carried out by accomplice Forrest Bateman.

-April 19, 2001: Christian white supremacists Leo Felton and girlfriend Erica Chase are arrested following an attempt to pass counterfeit bills. Investigators learn Felton heads up a tiny group called Aryan Unit One, and that the couple, who had already obtained a timing device, planned to blow up black and Jewish landmarks and possibly assassinate black and Jewish leaders. They are convicted of conspiracy, weapons violations and obstruction, bank robbery and other charges.

-October 14, 2001: October 14, 2001 Christian terrorist Steve Anderson, upon being pulled over in a routine traffic stop, pulls out a semi-automatic weapon and sprayed the police officer's car with bullets before fleeing into the woods in his truck. Officials later find six pipe bombs in Anderson's abandoned truck and 27 bombs and destructive devices in his home. He was found, arrested and sentenced to 15 years.

-July 19, 2002: Christian terrorist and North Carolina KKK leader Charles Robert Barefoot Jr. is arrested for plotting to blow up the Johnson County Sheriff's Office, the county jail and the sheriff. Officers find more than two dozen weapons in Barefoot's home and bombs and bomb components in the home of Barefoot's son, Daniel Barefoot, who is charged the same day with arson of a school bus and an empty barn.

-Feb 13, 2003: Anti-Semitic Christian terrorist David Wayne Hull, is arrested for attempting to buy hand grenades to blow up abortion clinics. The FBI says Hull also illegally instructed followers on how to build pipe bombs.

-April 1, 2004: Oklahoma Neo-Nazi and Christian terrorist Sean Gillespie videotapes himself firebombing the Temple B'nai Israel as part of a video he hopes will inspire others to commit similar attack. In it he states he will carry out 14 violent attacks, in reference to "the 14 words" cited by many white supremacists.

-October 13, 2004: Discharged National Guardsman turned Christian terrorist Ivan Duane Braden is arrested after telling counselors about his plans to blow up a synagogue and a National Guard armory in Tennessee. Braden told the FBI he planned to go into a synagogue wearing a trench coat stuffed with explosives and get "as close to children and the rabbi as possible."

-October 24, 2004: Anti-Semite and Christian terrorist Demetrius Crocker is arrested upon attempting to purchase ingredients for deadly sarin nerve gas and C-4 plastic explosives from an undercover agent.

-May 20, 2005: Neo-Nazi and Christian identity World Church of the Creator terrorists Craig Orler and Gabriel Carafa are arrested when they ask a police informant to build them a bomb. They are charged with the illegal sale of 11 guns to police informants.

-June 10, 2005: Christian KKK terrorist Daniel J. Schertz is indicted in Chattanooga, Tenn., on federal weapons charges for allegedly making seven pipe bombs and selling them to an undercover informant with the idea that they would be used to murder Mexican and Haitian immigrant workers.

-October 28, 2008: Christian white supremacists Daniel Cowart and Paul Schlesselman, are arrested in Tennessee for plotting to assassinate Barack Obama and murder more than 100 black people. Officials say Schlesselman and Cowart planned to kill 88 people, then behead another 14.

-April 4, 2009: Christian white supremacist Richard Andrew Poplawski is arrested after killing 3 police officers and severely wounding a fourth. He informs investigators that he fired extra bullets into the bodies of two of the officers “just to make sure they were dead.”

-May 31, 2009. Christian terrorist Scott Roeder kills Dr. George Tiller, an abortion provider, in the Wichita, Kansas Lutheran church where Tiller serves as an usher.

-June 10, 2009. Christian and white supremacist James von Brunn kills a security guard at the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C. from point-blank range.

-September 26-October 3, 2011. Christian white supremacists David Joseph Pedersen and Holly Ann Grigsby kill Pedersen's father and stepmother in Washington, a man they believe is Jewish in Oregon, and a black man in California.

- Wisconsin in 2012 , six people killed at a Sikh temple by Christian terrorist Wade Page

-April 13, 2014. Christian terrorist and white supremacist Frazier Glenn Miller kills three people in the area of a Jewish community center and Jewish retirement community in Overland Park, Kansas.

-July 24, 2015: Radical Christian and anti-feminist terrorist John Russell Houser kills two women at a screening of the Amy Schumer comedy Trainwreck in Lafayette, Louisiana.

-Nov. 27, 2015: Cristian terrorist Robert Lewis Dear shoots and kills three people, including a police officer, at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs.

-January 30, 2017: Christian white nationalist kills 6 in a Quebec Canada mosque.

-January of 2017: Christian white supremacists threaten 48 different Jewish centers with bombings.

I'm very sure there are more but truly, I am sick of typing. Sources include SPLC, CNN, Wkipedia and RawStory.

February 20, 2017

Milo disinvited to CPAC; time to go after his sweetheart book deal with Simon & Schuster

There is nothing more contemptible and subject to greater scorn in our society than child rape and advocates of child rape.

The video that surfaced of Milo advocating child rape resulted in his invitation to CPAC being rescinded, but to really hit him where he lives, in the pocketbook, we must strike while the iron is hot and pressure his publishers to pull his book deal.

Article about the book deal: http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-ca-jc-yiannopoulos-book-deal-20170104-story.html

[font size = 3]Simon & Schuster customer service 1 (800) 223-2336
Link to send written message: http://www.simonandschuster.com/about/contact_us

Threshold Editions
General Phone: 212-698-7006
General Fax: 212-698-2858 [/font]