Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Feb 25 - 11:11 AM

Trump has to be impeached if the GOP wants to retain any power in their respective houses and get Musk out of the treasury.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Donuel
Date: 01 Feb 25 - 11:48 AM

Criminals don't leave the gang until the loot is split up.
Trump is actually considered to be gangsta and cool in the general hip hop culture.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: SPB-Cooperator
Date: 01 Feb 25 - 11:50 AM

sounds like a human breeding programme is trumps workaround for the labour shortages his deportation policy will cause

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Donuel
Date: 01 Feb 25 - 02:25 PM

I don't get the breeding program. He wants to clean out, eliminate, deport, or otherwise get rid of certain people.
This is his last chance to get rid of anyone who will prosecute or investigate him, in the near future. It's also his last chance to profit from his presidency.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: robomatic
Date: 01 Feb 25 - 02:32 PM

Helen: It's been said that few intellectuals' democratic principles survive a conversation with the average voter.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Feb 25 - 02:34 PM

With no abortion, that would be the "breeding program."

I've looked around and found a source of 20" x 30" foam core for making signs. Office supply stores are expensive but Dollar Tree sells a pack of 20 for $25. Headed over there shortly. I also just joined the local branch of the League of Women Voters.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Helen
Date: 01 Feb 25 - 05:38 PM

Thanks robomatic. I appreciate the reminder to be a better human.

I don't agree with the death penalty so I shouldn't have let my emotions take over. Reading The Handmaid's Tale 40 years ago was very confronting, scary, but I tried to convince myself that it could never happen in reality. Seeing Trump's moves towards taking away women's rights and seeing The Handmaid's Tale mentioned in this thread has triggered a lot of those past feelings, so that is my only explanation for losing my grip on balanced reality.

I promise to be more humane from now on, even when faced with some scary moments I thought could only happen in Sci-Fi dystopic novels and films. :-)

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: robomatic
Date: 01 Feb 25 - 05:50 PM

I think Tom Clancy said, but he probably didn't invent the idea, that writing fiction was harder than fact, because fiction had to be believable.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Feb 25 - 07:33 PM

I'm literally rearranging my work schedule so in the evening I can step away from the computer and do something like sew or read or work a jigsaw and listen to an audiobook. Too much news now rots the mood, and self-medication works against us.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: SPB-Cooperator
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 06:56 AM

Helen, it is hard to hold a balanced view in an unbalanced world, and I an unashamed partisan in my views.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Donuel
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 09:02 AM

I can still amuse myself with ample footage of Trump signing over 300 crazy show-and-tell executive orders at high speed to a soundtrack of Yakkity Sax.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: SPB-Cooperator
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 09:49 AM

Not quite sure whether trump plans to deport non-Mexican nationals to. Claudia Sheinbaum has stared categorically this will not be Mexico'a responsivity.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 11:38 AM

> " [...] I don’t know where else I’ve seen a policy
> of ‘we need to incentivize baby-making.’”

"Mother of the Soviet Union." says I.

"Germany under the Nazis," says Herself.

Subsidiary thought: The only thing anybody ever learns from history is that nobody ever learns anything from history. Consider the economically-illiterate imposition of punative tarrifs: as Jonty Bloom points out in this week's New European, putting 25% tarrifs on steel and aluminium in 2018 simply caused local producers to jack their prices by 24%, in the sure and certain knowledge that they had their customers (car makers, machine manufacturers etc) over a barrel. That's Practical Capitalism 101, as well as happening on the Oik-in-Chief's own watch.

Further back, Senators Smoot and Hawley slapped on import tarrifs in 1930 in response to the Depression, and every other country did it straight back; the result was to intensify the Depression and all but wreck the world economy. Rebooting the world took a world war, and a carefully-thought-through post-war recovery programme.

I'll end it there. I need some cat therapy.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 11:59 AM

PS: Can anyone else remember those Physics classes involving static electricity? The teacher produced charges of one kind by rubbing a glass rod with (I *think*) silk, and of the other with an amber rod and cat fur (the cat of course long since departed); one charge was positive, and the other negative.

But which was which? Enquiring cat staff wish to know.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Helen
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 01:22 PM

MaJoC, sadly cat therapy is no longer available to Hubby and I. All gone to cat heaven now.

I was reading the thread on the Vietnam Vet who contracted COVID-19 and I think it can be fairly attributed to Trump that the US had the worst rate of COVID infections and deaths in the world. If he wants to look at his accomplishments, he should not ignore that.


A graph showing the statistics:

Premature Mortality During COVID-19 in the U.S. and Peer Countries

And the article abstract:

Premature Mortality During COVID-19 in the U.S.

A note about the definition of excess deaths used in the study:

"Excess deaths are the number of deaths beyond what would have been expected in a typical year and can be due directly or indirectly to COVID-19, as well as other causes."

I look at that graph and see the influence of politics.

The US and UK had strong-willed COVID-denying and vaccine-denying politicians in power. Compare those stats with Japan and Australia, whose political leaders stepped up with every resource available to deal effectively with the problem. Both countries had less than the usual number of deaths, which I assume can be attributed to the vaccinations and other precautionary measures including social distancing, masks, handwashing, disinfecting etc.

I think Trump will go down in history for that "accomplishment".

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Donuel
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 02:51 PM

DJT is our modern-day snake oil doctor when medicine was largely charismatic, biased, and rumor-based.
Modern medicine has been based on evidence peering ever more deeply into our cells, proteins, and DNA.
It looks like we are going back to old-fashioned best-guess medicine with RFK anti-vaccine and DJT's horse dewormer cure-alls.
DJT has the same approach to economics blended with blackmail, extortion, and theft.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Donuel
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 02:58 PM

Perhaps RFK should have tried DJT's dewormer to avoid brain worms.
Sometimes even a blind squirrel finds a buried nut.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Helen
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 03:35 PM

LOL Donuel. Too late now for RFK because that (brainworm) horse has already bolted.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Helen
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 03:46 PM

I used to check this site regularly during the COVID period:

Worldometer Coronavirus Cases

Comparing developed countries, and not poor, under developed, under resourced countries, the US wins hands down.

Sort the columns by clicking the up-down arrow symbol next to the column name to compare different factors.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 threade
From: robomatic
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 04:21 PM

When I was a student I rented a room just off campus from a lovely septuagenarion who let me share the kitchen and TV room. At the time the BBC was airing the "I Claudius" series based on two books by Robert Graves. Landlady had had some Latin education and read some of the Roman histories Graves had used in framing his narrative, and we watched the series together.

The series showed its meagre BBC 70s budget in its set construction but the actors from Derek Jacobi to Brian Blessed, Siân Phillips and John Hurt chewed that scenery in the best way possible.

One of my favorite quotes from the series was a Roman historian being judged by a dictatorial figure he had displeased (said figure being played by a rollicking young Patrick Stewart as Sejanus) that it was a danger when mankind had lost its "sense of smell".

The protagonist, Claudius, for most of the story, longs for the re-establishment of the Roman republic, but when he himself is installed as emperor, is unable to achieve it.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Helen
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 04:54 PM

robomatic, with reference to I, Claudius and Derek Jacobi, and totally off-topic for this thread - or maybe not, now that I think about the plot - if you watch the hilariously clever Horrible Histories: The Movie - Rotten Romans in the first scene the Emperor Claudius is played by none other than Derek Jacobi. He then immediately gets bumped off by his scheming wife who thinks she can take over until their son comes of age.

And another thought has struck me about COVID-related deaths. To date there have been 1,219,487 COVID-related deaths in the US since COVID started. Assuming that a significant chunk of those people believed and trusted Trump's trumped up conspiracy theories and died as a result of that belief and trust, then Trump probably lost a significant percentage of his voters who supported him. He could have had a bigger victory in this last election if his voters had lived to vote again.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: robomatic
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 05:01 PM

Helen: Considering the theme and especially the end of the series, I think it is horribly appropriate.

And to drag in a favorite radio reference (BBC) a quote from the Goon show that I've employed adapted to the States:


"Cheer up, dear listeners: Old England isn't finished yet-"

"It's finished-"

thunk

"NOW!"

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 05:25 PM

Ah --- I CLAVDIVS. We've got the videotapes, and both the books (which get called "One Clavdivs" and "Two Clavdivs" in our house). That series is from the days when Them In Charge thought cardboard scenery wasn't as important as good scriptwriters and real actors, and it's all the better for it; even when I hear the low thrum of the studio air-extraction fans in the background in some of the quiet passages, it's more a side amusement than a distraction. And verily, watching the current hot mess going on behind the Graeco-Romanesque frontage of the White House, we both find it looks horribly familiar.

Meanwhile, back at the point: If the Stable Genius decides some of those in the air-traffic trade are mentally defective, would he replace them with people who have had bits of their brains eaten by a worm?

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 08:19 PM

Indivisible and other groups meeting tonight; the Zoom meeting maxed out (I got in, amazingly) but it is also live-streaming on YouTube and they're recording to play later.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55yf3AstpQI

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Donuel
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 08:56 PM

"Let all the evil in the mud Hatch Out!

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Donuel
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 09:04 PM

The District court has ruled with vehemence to cease the freeze.
No waiting for evaluation and to apologize to every person you sent that email to.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Helen
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 09:06 PM

When I was searching for the file on my computer with the COVID stats I had compiled during the pandemic, I also found a photo of Trump and a photo of a Cane Toad which I had saved during his first Presidential term.

This front view shows a similar eye-popping characteristic to Trump.

The many facial expressions of Donald Trump

Donald Trump

Cane toads are an introduced, invasive species in Oz and this creates problems for the environment in a number of ways, making it difficult for diverse species to live a comfortable and healthy life in their natural habitat. (Irony intended)

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 10:00 PM

There is going to be a "kit" of materials available (check on the YouTube video for stuff added to the page) that will give information on how to set up visits to the local office for your senators, etc.

It is clear that this isn't a Democratic or Republican issue - everyone is going to be hurt by this crap. I'm planning a trip to the nearests offices of both state US senators this week, once I read through the kit information.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Feb 25 - 10:05 PM

A quote from Wired today (I had to join to read it, but the first year is $5 and they offer access to other journals for a good price if you're interested):

Already, Musk’s lackeys have taken control of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and General Services Administration (GSA), and have gained access to the Treasury Department’s payment system, potentially allowing him access to a vast range of sensitive information about tens of millions of citizens, businesses, and more. On Sunday, CNN reported that DOGE personnel attempted to improperly access classified information and security systems at the US Agency for International Development and that top USAID security officials who thwarted the attempt were subsequently put on leave. The Associated Press reported that DOGE personnel had indeed accessed classified material.

“What we're seeing is unprecedented in that you have these actors who are not really public officials gaining access to the most sensitive data in government,” says Don Moynihan, a professor of public policy at the University of Michigan. “We really have very little eyes on what's going on. Congress has no ability to really intervene and monitor what's happening because these aren't really accountable public officials. So this feels like a hostile takeover of the machinery of governments by the richest man in the world.”

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Donuel
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 07:28 AM

Musk goons have the data & key passwords of the Treasury. THE PERSON WHO GAVE THEM ACCESS WAS BELOW MY FRIEND'S PAYGRADE but was promised a Trump promotion.

Goons were denied access to USAID passwords to move money. THE EXTRACTION OF MONEY PASSWORDS are not all in one basket. Access passwords are really entire systems and not a matter of a code or a birthday. Trump continues to ignore court rulings although they have complied with ordered emails, big deal.

MUSK & GOONS HAVE NOT FAKEN AN OATH TO THE CONSTITUTION NOR ARE THEY GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.

USAID people had more courage and ethics than the coward at the Treasury. WILL CONGRESS ASSIST THE GOONS OR EXPRESS THEIR CONSTITUTIONAL POWER?

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 09:35 AM

Just heard on BBC News 24:

Presidential decree to hit the EU with tarrifs. One chap's reaction: The EU should impose punitive tarrifs on companies personally owned by the Oik-in-Chief, for example "his orange juice company".

Excuse me a moment, please. My ironyometer's just exploded.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 10:16 AM

Heard on the Beeb again, summarised by Herself (prob misheard by me):

"Ontario has forbidden bidding by US firms for Government contracts, and they've ripped up a contract with Elon Musk." [Verification and details, anybody?]

Her verdict: "Canada's got more balls than the UK."

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 10:26 AM

This just seen in The Register:

US datacenters in for shock as Canada mulls cutting the juice over Trump tariffs

[...]

These tariffs have widely been met with dismay, with tech industry groups within the US saying they are not a good idea and stock markets in Europe and Asia declining amid threats of a widespread trade war.

In Canada, it is being suggested the country should go further in retaliation than merely imposing its own tariffs on US-made goods, and withhold the supply of key items to America including energy resources.

One group making this suggestions is the Canadian Labour Congress, to which most Canuck unions are affiliated. It labeled the US tariffs "an attack on Canadian workers and our economy," and called for "cutting off US access to critical Canadian resources – including electricity, lumber, critical minerals, oil, and gas – until the tariffs are lifted."

I'll leave it there awhile.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 10:37 AM

From the FB Page ‘Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail’…

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid0JAxQzFDix32vsGX2Y5eyi3icagxmHZXbEjJHGMsMWva7EbnsfxZvBiZh6sNtD5ybl&id=100079779344617

”It started with a whisper—an eerie shuffling of feet in the halls of the Hoover Building, the kind of sound you hear when the executioner is sharpening his axe. By the time the Friday news cycle hit, it was a goddamn bloodbath.

Donald Trump, back in power like some bloated resurrection of a Roman emperor who refuses to die, has begun his most unhinged crusade yet: a mass purge of the FBI, the Justice Department, and anyone else who ever had the gall to investigate him. It’s the kind of thing you’d expect in some banana republic where the dictator wears aviators and gold epaulets while drinking rum out of a skull. But no, it’s happening here—right in the United States, land of the free (terms and conditions apply).

The order came down like a thunderclap from the Mouth of Madness itself. The Justice Department is demanding a list—a blacklist—of every single FBI agent who worked on the January 6 insurrection or any Trump-related investigation. Thousands of names. Careers on the chopping block.

This isn’t just your standard Nixonian revenge fantasy—it’s full-blown Stalinist paranoia with a golf handicap. Trump, a man who treats the rule of law like it’s an expired Burger King coupon, is now gutting federal law enforcement with the precision of a maniac wielding a rusty chainsaw.

At least five top FBI officials in Miami, Philadelphia, Washington, New Orleans, and Las Vegas were ordered to resign or be fired. Gone. Erased. Wiped clean like a casino ledger after a Mob hit. But it doesn’t stop with the bigwigs—this is a scorched-earth campaign against the entire bureau.

And just to drive the knife in deeper, Trump’s minions are now firing prosecutors—specifically those who worked on the January 6 cases. More than a dozen already gone. More to come. This is the guy who pardoned every single Capitol rioter on Day One of his second term, and now he’s making sure their prosecutors never work again.

It’s not just about loyalty—it’s about total submission. The Justice Department is being purged like it’s a goddamn witch trial. Trump and his goons don’t just want control; they want retribution. If you so much as touched the January 6 case, even by accident, you’re marked.

And let’s not kid ourselves about what comes next. If you can erase entire swaths of the FBI overnight, what’s stopping you from moving down the food chain? Journalists. Professors. Judges. Regular citizens who ever said a bad word about Trump on Twitter.

This isn’t a government anymore. This is a gangland purge. The Sopranos with a nuclear arsenal.

You have to appreciate the tragic irony. For years, Trump and his lackeys screamed about how the FBI was a rogue, deep-state cabal plotting against him. And now? He’s turned it into his own private mafia. A new political police force that operates only at his pleasure, with Kash Patel—his glorified attack dog—waiting in the wings to take over the whole thing.

The FBI Agents Association is screaming into the void, warning that this mass extermination of law enforcement is going to cripple national security. But Trump doesn’t care about national security. His idea of national security is making sure he is secure from ever facing justice again.

The message is loud and clear: investigate Trump, and you will be ruined. No trial, no due process. You will be fired, humiliated, and possibly prosecuted yourself. It doesn’t matter if you were just some poor desk jockey who handled the paperwork—you are an enemy now.

And when the FBI stops investigating Trump and his allies? What do you think they’ll start investigating instead?

It’s a goddamn Nacht der langen Messer—the Night of the Long Knives, except instead of storming hotels with pistols, they’re storming federal agencies with pink slips. We are watching a purge in real time.

People in power are always dangerous, but Trump has a special kind of danger about him—one that is equal parts stupid and terrifying. A creature of pure vengeance, unburdened by ethics, law, or even the most basic understanding of governance.

You don’t need to work at the FBI to be a target. This is just the beginning.

Think about it—if he’s willing to dismantle entire institutions that protected the country just to save his own bloated hide, what do you think he’ll do to regular citizens who stand in his way? You don’t have to be a federal agent to get on the wrong list. Maybe you were at a protest. Maybe you wrote a mean Facebook post. Maybe you just looked at him funny.

The real horror here isn’t just what’s happening—it’s how little anyone is stopping it. The Republican Party isn’t just silent; they’re cheering this on. The same people who spent years screeching about the "weaponization of government" are now actively encouraging it, because it’s their guy holding the axe.

And the Democrats? Well, they’ll probably send out some strongly worded tweets. Maybe a fundraising email. That’ll show him.

Meanwhile, Trump’s supporters are foaming at the mouth, cheering for the dismantling of the same institutions that kept them safe from things like, oh, I don’t know, terrorists. Organized crime. Corrupt politicians. Who needs an independent FBI when you can have a Trump Bureau of Investigation that only investigates his enemies?

This is how it starts. The moment when a republic stops being a republic and becomes a crime syndicate with a flag.

Nobody should be sleeping easy right now. Because if Trump can erase entire sections of the FBI without consequence, then nothing is stopping him from coming for everyone else.

This isn’t a government anymore. It’s a hit list. And we’re all on it.”

Be afraid, be very afraid - shades of 1930s Germany, and look how well that turned out.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 11:08 AM

I was busy watching a Zoom meeting about political action, I didn't watch the Grammy's last night. Did anyone say anything about Trump and Project 2025 in their speeches? Because I feel like the whole world needs to just stop whatever else they're doing and address this Vought/Musk/Trump disaster.

This is from Indivisible:

Because he’s serious about implementing Project 2025, Trump has nominated its ‘chief architect’ Russ Vought (pronounced like “Vote”) to lead the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). OMB is possibly the most powerful federal agency you rarely, if ever, hear about; it oversees the implementation of the President’s vision for the whole Executive Branch, crafting budgets, managing operations, and reviewing draft regulations and policies to make sure agencies are complying with the President’s priorities. Under Trump 2.0, OMB will essentially be the top enforcer of Project 2025 - and he’s nominated one of its authors and top MAGA strategist, Russ Vought, to be OMB Director.

Vought held this same role at OMB in Trump’s first term, so we don’t have to guess how much damage he’ll do if he gets a chance at round two. He’ll double down on concentrating unprecedented executive power and transforming the federal government into a tool of white Christian nationalism and political revenge. He’ll orchestrate budgets that slash funding for vital programs and direct spending in violation of congressional authority, like when he held up aid to Ukraine as part of Trump’s attempted extortion scheme. He’ll implement the personnel policy Trump has vowed to reinstate on day one that will enable mass firings across the federal government to make way for loyal MAGA operatives. And he’s reportedly been secretly drafting a first 180 days playbook filled with executive orders, policies, and other plans so Trump 2.0 can hit the ground running with maximum damage.

Demand your Senators vote NO on Vought (pronounced like “Vote”) to be Director of OMB. Trump may have tried to distance himself from Project 2025 on the campaign trail to get elected, but nominating Russ Vought proves he’s putting those plans into overdrive.

It came with a form to fill out to be put in contact with senators. I plan to drive over to the local offices this week to pay the staff of each a call.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: meself
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 11:18 AM

'"Ontario has forbidden bidding by US firms for Government contracts, and they've ripped up a contract with Elon Musk." [Verification and details, anybody?]'

Yes, on both counts. It's a 'Starlink' contract.

Tariffs will hit the auto industry particularly hard - on both sides of the border. That industry is a big element of both Ontario's and Michigan's economies, and is inextricably linked across the border: the parts of a vehicle and the incomplete vehicle itself may cross the border any number of times before the vehicle is ready for market. A 25% tariff every time makes the system unworkable. Predictions from those in the know are that the North American auto industry could be shut down within a week after tariffs are instituted.

Doug Ford, Ontario's Conservative Premier, came out swinging at the first mention of tariffs, and has continued his aggressive defence of his province's economy. There may well be a dose of political opportunism in what is otherwise, I think, genuine distress, and determination to defend his bailiwick. Before this American attack popped up out of nowhere, Ford had been under attack for some questionable moves, and he recently called an election, ostensibly to shore up support for his fight on tariffs; the Opposition accuses him of exploiting this situation to gain more political power, and to have it for an extra couple of years.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: meself
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 11:34 AM

The idea that Canada could just turn off the energy tap is not as simple as it might appear.

For one thing, there are deep stresses between Alberta, the big oil-producing province, and the Federal government, and the eastern half of the country generally (there is a strong sense in Alberta that it collectively has been, and is being, robbed by the eastern provinces). Alberta is governed by far-right ideologues with separatist leanings (think: MAGA north), and the feds feel they have to step gingerly when it comes to anything that could interfere with Alberta's oil revenue.

The other big factor, is that the pipeline that carries oil to central/eastern Canada, passes through the States, so is vulnerable to being shut down by the Americans.

And another thing: given the madness of King trump, and moreso, nearly half the populace of the USA, it would not be a good idea to hand him a pretext for a Special Military Operation, by, for example, cutting off the flow of hydro-electricity to the northern states ....

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 12:42 PM

Interesting piece from Robert Reich on Substack…

It seems to me that it’s high time for the rest of the world to get together and punch the bastard down to the ground.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 01:21 PM

From Bloomberg (via Robert Hubbell's newsletter):

Musk Says DOGE Halting Treasury Payments to US Contractors

Elon Musk said his “DOGE team” of government efficiency enforcers is shutting down some payments to federal contractors, suggesting that the world’s richest man may have access to sensitive systems used at the US Treasury Department.

“The corruption and waste is being rooted out in real-time,” Musk posted on X, saying officials reporting to his so-called Department of Government Efficiency are “rapidly shutting down” payments to a Lutheran charity.

The Treasury Department didn’t immediately respond to questions about the extent of Musk’s access. President Donald Trump has put the Tesla CEO — and largest donor to his election effort — in charge of an effort to modernize federal information technology.

But Musk seems to be expanding that mandate to include control over financial flows in other parts of the federal government. Top security officials at USAID were placed on leave Saturday after refusing to allow DOGE staffers access to systems at the foreign assistance agency, saying they lacked the required security clearances.

Musk on Sunday called USAID “a criminal organization” that should “die.”

Musk is targeting systems that process tens of billions of dollars a day in payments for US government agencies and the officials that oversee them. Musk’s statements on Sunday follow last week’s departure of David Lebryk, the Treasury Department’s most senior career official, who had been in charge of payment systems at the Bureau of the Fiscal Service.

Trump gave Musk’s efforts his seal of approval Sunday night. “Elon’s doing a good job,” Trump said to reporters.

“He’s a big cost cutter,” Trump said. “Sometimes we won’t agree with it and we’ll not go where he wants to go, but I think he’s doing a great job. He’s a smart guy, very smart, and he’s very much into cutting the budget of our federal government.”

Senator Ron Wyden, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, said Friday that he’s been told that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has granted DOGE full access to Treasury’s payment systems.

“Social Security and Medicare benefits, grants, payments to government contractors, including those that compete directly with Musk’s own companies,” Wyden said on BlueSky, a social media rival to Musk’s X. “All of it.”

Treasury officials have long maintained that its role is to serve as the federal government’s checkbook — and that the decision about whether to approve or deny payment belongs to individual agencies based on funds appropriated by Congress.

“The @DOGE team discovered, among other things, that payment approval officers at Treasury were instructed always to approve payments, even to known fraudulent or terrorist groups. They literally never denied a payment in their entire career. Not even once,” Musk wrote on X, without providing evidence.

The Treasury has a Do-Not-Pay system in place designed to prevent such payments.

Musk said DOGE was shutting down payments by the US Department of Health and Human Services to Lutheran Family Services, a faith-based charity that has been providing social services to refugees. HHS and Lutheran Family Services didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Musk thinks money is going to terrorists groups so he's taking over the entire US government finances? Really? No evidence, just his opinion, mind you.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President 1 thread
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 01:43 PM

I've just remembered where I've heard this kind of one-upmanship before ....

Once upon a time (late 1960s iirc), two bands were playing in London. The leaders of said bands, Frank Zappa and Captain Beefheart, got into a competition to see which of them could get away with doing the most bizarre outrageosity, live on stage, without getting thrown off. Near the start, I heard, Zappa was shouting four-letter words over the footlights, eg "WITH" and "FROM" .... the later stages were Not Nice.

Now we've got Agent Orange and Agent X taking turns, to see which of them gets away with the most gratuitous and stupid act of performative cruelty before the other one gets properly spanked. But who's playing Nanny? --- Vlad? At least the antics of Zappa and Beefheart had a limited blast radius.

Now I really am depressed. *Protest*: I want the inside of my head back.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 01:46 PM

> “He’s a big cost cutter,” Trump said.

Reminds me of that old Athena poster, popular in academic circles:

If you think education's expensive, try ignorance.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup
From: meself
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 01:56 PM

[Thread drift, but: "The leaders of said bands, Frank Zappa and Captain Beefheart ... " - any reliable source?]

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 01:57 PM

Taking over the entire money thing, personally:

Command economies are inherently fragile, and about as stable as a fighter jet without computer assistance. If you control everything, you *have* to control *everything*.

--- Enough. I've a Zoom session to join, which may or may not help calm me down. See you on the flip side.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 02:05 PM

This is a gift article from the Wall Street Journal Musk Moves with Lightning Speed to Exert Control Over the Government

I just tried to tell my next door neighbor about this; it hasn't been in any news stories. "What Biden did in the last four years was terrible" was her answer. My retort - but Biden and Trump are elected officials. Musk is the richest man in the world taking over the finances of the richest country in the world.

Crickets.

I fear these folks are going to find out the hard way what Musk is doing. We all are.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup
From: Donuel
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 05:08 PM

My posts only give a 2 to 6-day preview of what will be found by reliable journalists online. It's time to go dark for a while. Who really needs bad news early anyway?

We are not in a Mussolini fascist dictatorship, it is very much like a Banana Republic enforced by the wealthy cartels who operate outside the Constitution.
As for tariffs: Produce prices will quickly rise by 3%, then 7%.
Other goods will take a little longer to spike.

President Jackson spit in the face of the courts and so far, so is DJT.
Musk thugs have reached way down the ranks to gain access from traitors and cowards to their oath to gain access to US funds.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 05:21 PM

Stay safe while you're at it, Don.

TikTok video by Branding Democrats. The media seems to have rolled over, it's happening without their protest or covering it.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup
From: Donuel
Date: 03 Feb 25 - 06:27 PM

It's good that DJT now CANCELED the tariff war. Well, for 30 days anyway. The WSJ called the tariff war the most stupid move.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup
From: SPB-Cooperator
Date: 04 Feb 25 - 05:35 AM

It is par fr the course for the turnip to screw over his contractors and if murk is going to sing from the same hymnbook who in their right mind would want to risk bidding for federal infrastructure contracts?

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup
From: Donuel
Date: 04 Feb 25 - 09:30 AM

DJT loves President Jackson who fired all the civil servants and replaced them with know nothing loyalists. That system lasted from 1829 to 1883 until there was a presidential assasination by a disgruntled job seeker and the first civil service exams began.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47th President/ Musk Coup
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 04 Feb 25 - 01:06 PM

This morning I heard that Secy of State Rubio has negotiated that El Salvador would take all deportees (whatever their nationality) and will take the "worst US felons" from prison. US citizens. It's mind boggling - and remember when Trump accused Mexico of opening their prisons? He telegraphs everything he's thinking, and you know he's going to try himself.

There are no brakes on that clown car and no filter on the mouth.