Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Aethelric
Date: 18 May 25 - 01:57 PM

I went to a festival in Cornwall England today. One of the stalls was "Punch a Trump for the climate". There was a dummy of trump and a boxing glove. Three punches for £1.
It was quite popular.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Donuel
Date: 18 May 25 - 11:37 AM

The last time I was on TV, I said that I saw evidence of organic brain disease in Reagan's behavior. Everyone else on the panel condemned my comment. Three years later, Nancy wrote a letter about Reagan having Alzheimers. From what I have seen of Biden, there does seem to be a slippage and inability to focus on the point at his weakest moments.
You don't need to believe me but those who saw the Biden debate debacle are going to believe their eyes, not their lying eyes.

btw Trump now has 3 airplanes (2 Air Force one and his own plane)
He does not need 30 planes any more than a girl needs 30 dolls.

Boys who have Hot Wheels cars won't have just three. They most likely have damn near a hundred. There seems to be a gender bias regarding the number of toys.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 17 May 25 - 10:55 PM

"I'm the Problem; It's Me": On the Confession the Mainstream Media Won't Make

Rebecca Solnit
17 May 2025

Part of the piece:

We in the USA are in deep trouble and a major reason for the trouble we're in is the mainstream media and their many persistent distortions of truth, fact, reality in service of their agendas and the limits of their worldview (and lack of resistance to intimidation by the right). That habit has contributed hugely to a misinformed electorate, which in turn contributes to the outcomes of elections. The msm have sins of omission (not covering or playing down important and impactful news, including out of deference to the right), sins of obsession (pumping up minor stories into manufactured scandal and drama), and sins of distortion ( many kinds of bias manifested in many ways).

These institution powers routinely pretend they have no actual influence but are somehow standing behind a glass partition just quietly observing what happened, so they takes no responsibility for outcome, even as they exhibit huge biases and overt agendas, up to and including major impact on American elections, which in turn do much to shape (or sabotage) the fate of the world. While right-wing media are regularly excoriated, mainstream media sabotages democracy and justice less obviously but, because of its broader audiences, more effectively.

Its players seem to play for each others' approval so they dogpile, build echo chambers, feed off each other, install filter bubbles and huddle behind confirmation biases. They collectively fabricate official versions of what happened that often diverge from the facts. Right now a prime example is contaminating the informational drinking water. It should be the dullest story ever, the smallest potatoes, the most nothing-scented nothingburger, but while the Trump Administration plays nice with autocrats in the middle east and terrorizes brown people who are undocumented, or here legally, or actually citizens, sabotages the global economy, and dismantles the federal government while trying to destroy all our rights and also the rule of law, media bigwigs Jake Tapper of CNN and Alex Thompson of Axios (but also a CNN pundit, because media inbreeding is a thing) are selling a book about Joe Biden with the pumped-up title Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again. Books take a long time to write, edit, proofread, lay out, print, and distribute, so they likely decided to work on this before the election – perhaps they were hoping to do some damage to a Harris administration, but they're distracting from a Trump Administration instead. In Christian theology, original sin is what Adam and Eve committed by disobeying God; in American history, slavery is often said to be this nation's original sin; but in this book it's being old.

It discusses the Clooney episode and people who dispute it ever happened.
Skip down to the last two paragraphs:

One of the outrages of last summer was how the New York Times tried to, in a big front page story on July 8, insinuate that Biden had Parkinson's disease, by making drama about the fact that Dr. Kevin R. Cannard, a neurologist, had visited the White House several times while Biden was president. The Times apparently picked up the idea of calling the neurologist a Parkinson's expert from the right-wing New York Post (which belongs to Rupert Murdoch, who did a lot to bring us Trump in 2016), skipped the fact that some of the doctor's visits took place when Biden was not in residence, and ran a subhead that said "The White House implied that the doctor’s visits were related to treating other people," as if the shifty White House was saying something that could not be confirmed.

Cannard had, in fact, served in a clinic for White House employees through multiple administrations dating back to 2012. That Parkinson's story was part of the New York Times's furious campaign to force Biden's resignation--192 stories in less than two weeks focusing on his abysmal June debate performance and age--in one of the most outrageous transgressions of journalistic norms I've witnessed. It was the New York Times that published George Clooney's attack on Biden that July, whose claims the book in question here pumps up and Ambassador Gifford contradicts. I'm not interested in relitigating Biden's anything, but I am interested in mapping how major news media, functioning as an unaccountable fourth branch of government, misuse their power in destructive ways.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Helen
Date: 17 May 25 - 10:46 PM

I don't know, Hrothgar. It would hurt his widdle feewings to admit to being mentally incompetent. :-D

robomatic, I saw a news article earlier this week which seemed to be saying that some of the white Afrikaaners wanted to emigrate to the US because they believe they are the subject of racism. (My comment is: WTF?)

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 17 May 25 - 10:30 PM

All of this drama with the Afrikaner's feeling discriminated against in South Africa begs the question - why come to the US? Why not go to the Netherlands where their earlier generations came from?

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: robomatic
Date: 17 May 25 - 10:20 PM

According to NPR's "On The Media" aired this evening, a delegation from South Africa was in Washington to gain support for recognition of their plight in their homeland under prejudice.

They got more than they thought they would bargain for!

It's hard to see how the divide in perceptions came to be, but the TRMP administrators along with ol' baldy himself decided to treat them as an endangered persecuted minority. And allow them to settle in these United States. Which is actually quite far from what they wanted or were asking for.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Hrothgar
Date: 17 May 25 - 10:19 PM

Does it bother anyone that when the time comes for Trump to answer for all this, his lawyers will plead that he is mentally incompetent to stand trial?

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Helen
Date: 17 May 25 - 09:19 PM

An observation on the dynamic between Pope Leo IV and Trump and it is worth reading the whole article, in my opinion. Basically the idea seems to be there is hope, but there are no easy answers:

Our future lies in the clash between the US president and Pope Leo, the anti-Trump. By Julia Baird on ABC (Oz) News

"Pope Leo XIV began his first speech with one word: 'Peace.'

"Yet even that was viewed as a provocation by ideologues who had already dismissed him as the 'woke pope'. It's an odd slur to cast on a person who has just said that perhaps racism isn't such a great thing, that we should love each other, that we should refrain from demonising the stateless. But this is the position Pope Leo has found himself in.

"Hard-right Trump adviser Laura Loomer quickly declared he 'is anti-Trump, anti-MAGA, pro-open Borders, and a total Marxist like Pope Francis', arguing that the fact he now leads the Vatican is 'gross'.

"For MAGA, it often seems, anyone who is not pro-Trump is woke.

"This means Pope Leo, previously Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, is, like his predecessor Pope Francis, one of the few people — perhaps the only one — to offer a significant global alternative to the dominant 'America-first' US president.

"President Trump leads a country of 340 million. Pope Leo leads 1.4 billion globally.

"And now the two men are being pitted against each other in the popular imagination as President Trump rounds up migrants, cuts off aid and redefines the world order according to who holds the most cards, and Pope Leo calls for dignity for the poor and protection for refugees."

...

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Helen
Date: 17 May 25 - 05:52 PM

My opinion on Biden in the election period was a man under intense pressure to try to save the democratic principles of his beloved country and he is not the man to give up under pressure. I think he would prefer to go down fighting than to give up the fight.

When he recognised that his cognitive problems, exacerbated by the extreme stress he was under, were not going to help the fight, he graciously gave up the reigns to a worthy successor. Unfortunately, it was late in the fight and the timing to the election put increasing pressure on Kamala Harris and the Democrats, and the opponents were and still are unscrupulous and vicious.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Donuel
Date: 17 May 25 - 05:03 PM

Filk, I draw the line at the inability to recognize George Clooney or Taylor Swift. I might forget famous names on occasion due to dyslexia, but I still recognize the person.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Donuel
Date: 17 May 25 - 04:33 PM

I have long speculated that Trumpists have scoured the internet for enemies and phone polls to pigeonhole the politics of individuals and families. My wife does not agree because the magaverse is too incompetent to assemble such a database. I have researched some of those polling services and have found a twenty-something CEO at the head of the snake.
With the recent DOGE efforts to erase/fire enemies based on race and ideology in government service, often without any evidence, I believe the enemy list has grown larger.

The Nazis declared an end to Jewish intellectualism with book burnings while Trump is doing much the same with anti DEI policies and his war on immigrants, threatening judges and FBI directors with treason punishable by prison or death by ardent Trumpists. With total control of Kennedy Center entertainment, the Library of Congress, and constant Trump propaganda commercials that blanket streaming TV and internet social twitterverse, there is a similar Nazi strategy to change the fabric of society.

Now here comes a 45 million dollar military parade on Trump's birthday in the nation's capital. Mara Lago, which is Trump's Berghoff, would make a suitable bunker for the Donald. Maybe he will add guard towers when blowback becomes larger.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 17 May 25 - 03:48 PM

Latest executive order. It is not Eurovision, it is USvision. Our music saved Europe and they never said thank you. No-one knows more about songs than me. It is only because of me that people like music. I hate European music. It is nasty and fake news. I won Eurovision seventeen times and Biden covered it up.

They're coming to take me away
Ha ha
Ho ho
He he

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 17 May 25 - 03:26 PM

I just saw a post about Ronald Reagan on Bluesky by Sherrilyn Ifill. And she shared a quote from Lesley Stahl in an article by David Corn (all forthright reporters each in their own way) in Mother Jones.

...Reagan didn't seem to know who I was. He gave me a distant look with those milky eyes and shook my hand weakly. Oh, my, he's gonzo, I thought. I have to go out on the lawn tonight and tell my countrymen that the president of the United States is a doddering space cadet. My heart began to hammer with the import. . . I was aware of the delicacy with which I would have to write my script. But I was quite sure of my diagnosis.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 17 May 25 - 01:59 PM

Just seen in the Comments on an ElReg article:

Putin probably told him [Poor Diddums] that a parade a year fixes erectile dysfunction.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 17 May 25 - 01:44 PM

.... Straight-line graphs look neater than noisy ones, esp when you're looking for That Simple Answer to complex questions*. But with cognitive decline, where should one draw the line? to show changes over time in the minima, the maxima, or the average? if so, which average? or instead show the variation between worst and best? place your bets, mesdames et messieurs: I remember seeing a paper where the writer carefully excluded all sub-par events from his data, and ended up with a signal which he admitted was all but indistinguishable from pure noise.

* As famously satirised by Douglas Adams.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Donuel
Date: 17 May 25 - 01:07 PM

Biden is a good man overall; however, when he could not recognize George Clooney, the jig was up. George was honest enough to tactfully tell the truth at the time. Cognitive decline has good and bad days.
Neuroscience has suffered from a linear 'diagnosis' paradigm when in reality everything is on a spectrum and frequency.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Helen
Date: 17 May 25 - 12:00 PM

Regarding the differences in self awareness between Biden and Trump, from my observations the main differences are in motivation, intention, aims, and the goals they want to achieve personally and in their respective roles as President.

In my opinion, Biden put his own health and well-being needs after the need to look after the country and take the right actions for the greater good. Trump's motivation, intention, aims and goals are totally centred around his own wants and needs and to hell with anyone or any institution or country who gets in his way.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Helen
Date: 17 May 25 - 11:24 AM

Thank you, Donuel. Your insight into Trump's self-awareness, thoughts and behaviour is, as we would say here in Oz, spot-on! You have hit the nail on the head.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 17 May 25 - 10:57 AM

From the reviews it sounds like that Tapper book about Biden is a hatchet job, they asked enough people to say bad things about Biden until they found the worst then used them. I wouldn't look at that as non-fiction, it's wishful thinking that "Biden was worse" in the face of Trump being as bad as they come cognition-wise.

Subject: RE: Men who are blind about themselves.
From: Donuel
Date: 17 May 25 - 10:26 AM

Just as Biden did not, could not, and would not recognize his own cognitive decline and inability to self-assess, Trump is unable and unwilling to see his own evil intent and savagery upon our nation, the world, and innocent people.

Looking within is a challenge many enlightened people undertake. Know thyself is an early philosophical truth that has failed the US Presidency for consecutive decades. Perhaps this scenario is purely coincidental or it is the most common failing of mankind. I do not know which.

One would assume the Constitution would protect the nation from men blind to themselves and instead create a nation of laws and not men.
Instead, Trump is playing 'catch me if you can,' and I will escape the grasp of law like I have time and again through delay and obfuscation.

Knowing yourself does not happen in a vacuum. It requires mentors, education and insight. When corrupt supporters are involved we fall into tribal gangsterism.

Perhaps only a few people will recognize the supreme importance of knowing the character of a leader to look within themselves truthfully but it is a crises that has appeared every century.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 17 May 25 - 06:20 AM

this article appeared today in our papers, & was originally published in the New York Times

‘Dystopia come to life’: How George Orwell wrote the book on Trump’s America The dire predictions of Orwell’s classic novel, 1984, are becoming a disturbing reality 75 years later
As US Vice President J. D. Vance dressed down European officials over two days in mid-February for criminalising far-right speech, his outrage built to the unkindest cut of all. “This is Orwellian,” he trumpeted, “and everyone in Europe and the US must reject this lunacy.”

A day later, George Orwell reappeared – this time wielded against US President Donald Trump after his truth-mangling suggestion that Ukraine was somehow responsible for Russia’s 2022 invasion. Even a fellow Republican, Representative Don Bacon of Nebraska, couldn’t resist: “Putin started this war,” he posted on X, adding, “I don’t accept George Orwell’s doublethink.”

And as Trump unleashed a torrent of norm-puncturing executive orders, so many references to 1984 have flooded the political conversation that it feels as if nearly half the electorate joined the same book group. After the White House took facts on a loop-de-loop, claiming that officials who revealed details of strike plans in Yemen on a Signal chat had not disclosed classified information, hundreds of people posted the same Orwell quote on social media: “The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.” T-shirts with the same line are available on Etsy for as low as $US16. So is one with a fake Orwell quip: “I literally wrote a book to warn you all about this.” (read on)

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 17 May 25 - 05:00 AM

Seems to me that The Fat, Orange Baboon’s obsession with former Presidents, especially Joe Biden and Barack Obama, and his vitriolic outbursts against anyone who criticises him, could be symptoms of the growing Dementia he’s reportedly suffering from.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Helen
Date: 17 May 25 - 04:48 AM

I would never have decoded that numeric sequence. Even with your explanation it made no sense to me here in Oz but I now know what it means.

What is 8647? Secret Service investigates former FBI director James Comey over seashells photo

"The US Secret Service is investigating former FBI director James Comey after he posted a photo to social media that Republicans allege is an incitement of violence against President Donald Trump."

I think this part of the article is interesting:

"The '8647' and '8646' themes have been used as political slogans and on T-shirts during the administrations of both Mr Trump and his predecessor, Joe Biden.

"Mr Trump himself has been accused of using social media posts to incite rioters, who attacked the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, to prevent the certification of Mr Biden's election victory.

"And he last year also posted on social media a video that featured an image of Mr Biden, who was then president, with his hands and feet tied together in the back of a pick-up truck."

Also a quote on that page from a post on X:

"Covie @covie_93

"The same people calling for Comey to be arrested for posting '8647' laughed and told us trump was joking when he posted a video with image showing Biden tied up in the back of a truck."


My comment: it's interesting the dichotomy between what Trump thinks he is allowed to say or do about people he doesn't like and when the boot is on the other foot and he himself is the target.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 17 May 25 - 04:43 AM

From Occupy Democrats yesterday - on FB, but C&Pd here for the benefit of our non-FB-ers.

Link to Occupy Democrats’ piece on Facebook

“BREAKING: The president of the American Federation of Musicians fires a pummeling barrage at Donald Trump in retaliation for his unhinged attacks on industry superstars Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen.

The music world is uniting in force against MAGA...

"The American Federation of Musicians will not remain silent as two of our members – Bruce Springsteen and Taylor Swift – are singled out and personally attacked by the President of the United States," stated Tino Gagliardi, the president of the American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada.

The AFM/AFofM is a widely respected labor union with nearly 66,000 members.

"Bruce Springsteen and Taylor Swift are not just brilliant musicians, they are role models and inspirations to millions of people in the United States and across the world," Gagliardi continued.

"Whether it’s Born in the USA or the Eras Tour, their music is timeless, impactful, and has deep cultural meaning. Musicians have the right to freedom of expression, and we stand in solidarity with all our members," he concluded.

Gagliardi's bold defense of the stars in question came after Trump lashed out on Truth Social.

"Has anyone noticed that, since I said 'I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT,' she’s no longer 'HOT?'" wrote the so-called president.

As Variety points out, Taylor Swift has never been more popular. In December, she concluded the highest grossing tour in history, raking in some $2 billion in grosses.

Trump's attack on Springsteen was lengthier, precipitated by the singer's anti-Trump remarks at a concert in England.

"I see that Highly Overrated Bruce Springsteen goes to a Foreign Country to speak badly about the President of the United States," Trump wrote.

"Never liked him, never liked his music, or his Radical Left Politics and, importantly, he’s not a talented guy — Just a pushy, obnoxious JERK, who fervently supported Crooked Joe Biden, a mentally incompetent FOOL, and our WORST EVER President, who came close to destroying our Country," he went on.

"If I wasn’t elected, it would have been GONE by now! Sleepy Joe didn’t have a clue as to what he was doing, but Springsteen is 'dumb as a rock,' and couldn’t see what was going on, or could he (which is even worse!)?" he continued.

"This dried out 'prune' of a rocker (his skin is all atrophied!) ought to KEEP HIS MOUTH SHUT until he gets back into the Country, that’s just 'standard fare.' Then we’ll all see how it goes for him!" he concluded.

The Truth Social meltdown occurred after Springsteen kicked off his hotly anticipated "Land of Hopes & Dreams" tour across Europe with a bombastic Trump takedown in Manchester.

"In my home, the America I love, the America I’ve written about, that has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent, and treasonous administration," the singer told the crowd.

"Tonight, we ask all who believe in democracy and the best of our American experiment to rise with us, raise your voices against authoritarianism and let freedom ring!" he continued.   

Later in the show, Springsteen circled back—

"The last check on power after the checks and balances of government have failed are the people, you and me," he said.

"It’s in the union of people around a common set of values now that’s all that stands between a democracy and authoritarianism. At the end of the day, all we’ve got is each other."   

"There’s some very weird, strange, and dangerous sh*t going on out there right now. In America they are persecuting people for using their right to free speech and voicing their dissent. This is happening now," said Springsteen.

"In America, the richest men are taking satisfaction in abandoning the world’s poorest children to sickness and death," he continued.

"In my country, they’re taking sadistic pleasure in the pain they inflict on loyal American workers. They’re rolling back historic civil rights legislation that has led to a more just and plural society," Springsteen went on.   

"They are abandoning our great allies and siding with dictators against those struggling for their freedom," he said. "They are defunding American universities that won’t bow down to their ideological demands. They are removing residents off American streets and without due process of law, are deporting them to foreign detention centers and prisons. This is all happening now."   

"A majority of our elected representatives have failed to protect the American people from the abuses of an unfit president and a rogue government," he continued. "They have no concern or idea for what it means to be deeply American."

"The America l’ve sung to you about for 50 years is real, and, regardless of its faults, is a great country with a great people," he said. "So we’ll survive this moment. Now, I have hope, because I believe in the truth of what the great American writer James Baldwin said. He said, 'In this world there isn’t as much humanity as one would like, but there’s enough.’ Let’s pray."

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Helen
Date: 16 May 25 - 10:15 PM

SRS said, "His widdle feewings are hurt by criticism from smarter people than he."

Donald Trump criticises Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen on Truth Social

...

"Springsteen, known as The Boss, described the Trump administration as 'corrupt, incompetent and treasonous" during a concert in Manchester this week — the first show in his current European tour.

"They're rolling back historic civil rights legislation that led to a more just and moral society,' Springsteen said.

"'They're abandoning our great allies and siding with dictators.'"

...

IMHO it's a badge of honour being criticised by Trump.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Donuel
Date: 16 May 25 - 09:01 PM

In the 1969 draft lottery, which was held to determine the order in which men would be called for service during the Vietnam War, June 14th was assigned the lottery number 356.
#1 was the first to be drafted.
My draft number was 17.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 16 May 25 - 07:12 PM

There's an excellent short meme making the rounds. Trump's birthday is June 14, and the 250th anniversary of the US Army is June 14. Unfortunate overlap. The meme simply says "Draft Dodgers Don't Deserve A Military Parade." And really, anyone with a conscience would think it was inappropriate to hold a huge parade if they got out of the draft with "bone spurs."

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 16 May 25 - 05:59 PM

86 - get rid of, out of stock. 47 - the orange turd. Harmless first amendment stuff. His widdle feewings are hurt by criticism from smarter people than he. Too bad he has a lot of Christian Nationalist advisors pushing his buttons.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Donuel
Date: 16 May 25 - 04:45 PM

People are fine seeing the slaves, Aunt Jehmima, and Uncle Ben get fired over DEI racism or dark skinned children starve to death without USAID, but increase the price of beer, and an underground revolution could begin. I wonder what project 2025 has to say about internet porn. Once Medicaid is axed and the elderly are kicked out of nursing homes, and veterans are left on the street, all hell will break loose.
When bananas and coffee become luxury items, a black market of stolen coffee is sure to follow.

Will the scales fall from the eyes of MAGA rednecks? You bet your ass they will hols a Trump grudge.

Speaking of Trump grudges, Trump has demanded a criminal investigation of the former FBI director Comey for conspiracy to assassinate the President. You see he arranged seashells on the beach to spell out '8647'. Comey then posted the photo on social media.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 16 May 25 - 11:20 AM

For all that this group is watching and discussing, I fear a lot of people aren't paying attention as their rights are taken away. Today feels like we've slipped through a time portal back to the 1950s. No birth control or abortion, more kids, moms at home with fewer rights. Segregation still active, White men in charge.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 16 May 25 - 08:51 AM

PS: I've just remembered, from the arguments about Free Software, the "free as in speech" vs "free as in beer" controversy discussions. Then someone came up with "free as in puppy". The Klutz-in-Chief has just been sold a pup.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 16 May 25 - 08:26 AM

I could have sworn I commented about that Qarari plane (though I didn't have the "five years" detail to hand --- thanks, Donuel). Methinks I composed it N+1 times, but scratched it each time before posting, lest someone take offence at me calling it a "gold-plated penis extension".

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Donuel
Date: 16 May 25 - 07:29 AM

Trump has never been happier cavorting with Kings and feeling like the King of Kings. His temporary reversal of manic tariffs and several other acts of goodwill are meant to help his approval rating, but they do not alleviate uncertainty.

I'm sure he would like to behave like a Saudi King and dismember Carl Bernstein and throw the pieces in the ocean.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 16 May 25 - 04:16 AM

Saw the report on the Manchester Evening News FB Page, Dave. It’s a bit ‘clunky’, but an interesting read.

Good on Bruce - tell ‘em like it is, fella!

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 16 May 25 - 03:30 AM

Bruce Springsteen started his European tour in my home town of Manchester with an attack on "treasonous Trump"

Good for him

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 15 May 25 - 10:23 PM

I think he's hoping the US would foot the bill to update the plane. It would quite possibly cost more than the plane is worth and take till the end of his term (I'm still betting he won't make it to the end.)

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Donuel
Date: 15 May 25 - 10:17 PM

About the 'fancy' 13 year old airplane, it is a white elephant. Qatar has been trying to sell it for 5 years while amassing maintenance and storage fees. No one would buy it as predicted years ago. Sure Trump wants a toy. With enough loopholes he might get away with it. Even if he plasters his name on it and lets it sit and rot, it will still cost him money.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Helen
Date: 15 May 25 - 09:18 PM

I watched the Leslie Jones video - you go, Girl! - and watched this video from a link on the side of that page.

RFK is Screaming After BEING Caught Breaking The LAW in CONGRESS!

This is what we are all hoping to see: Trump's minions being called to account at the highest levels.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Helen
Date: 15 May 25 - 08:37 PM

If we listed all of Trump's sins, and all of the people who have been negatively affected by him, or who have died (e.g. COVID, or cutting USAID), how many pages would it be?

A very long toilet-roll?

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 15 May 25 - 06:45 PM

Leslie Jones on The Daily Show tells us exactly what she thinks.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Helen
Date: 15 May 25 - 03:33 PM

And this is one of the issues Trump has to take responsibility for, RFK announcing cuts to Medicaid and then he was interrupted by a protest raising issues about the war in Gaza and Israel's actions leading to the deaths of over 50,000 people in Gaza:

Ben & Jerry's co-founder Ben Cohen detained in vocal US senate protest about Gaza

"In short: Ben Cohen, the co-founder of Ben & Jerry's ice cream, was detained by US Capitol Police and removed from a senate hearing after interrupting a testimony delivered by Robert F Kennedy Jr.

"The 74-year-old was among a group of demonstrators who startled the health secretary by shouting that 'Congress pays for bombs to kill children in Gaza'.

"The businessman and philanthropist later told supporters that he plans to continue lobbying the US government to allow food and humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip."

...

"The health secretary [RFK Jr] had been speaking about his department's budget proposal to slash Medicaid — the health insurance program for low-income families — when Mr Cohen stood up and interjected, before being placed in handcuffs by police."

...

"Israel's war in Gaza began after the October 7, 2023 attack by the Hamas terror organisation, which resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

"Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 52,928 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to figures from the territory's Hamas-run health ministry, which the United Nations considers reliable.

"Gaza is at 'critical risk of famine', with the entire population facing a food crisis after more than two months of an Israeli aid blockade, and 22 percent facing a humanitarian 'catastrophe', a UN-backed food security monitor warned this week."

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Helen
Date: 15 May 25 - 03:00 PM

Donuel, you said, "The kind of pain Trump will inflict upon the modest and poor is something Trump and his family will eventually pay for."

That is exactly what I am hoping for. The Nobel Peace Prize is getting further from his reach, now that Putin declined his invitation to attend the peace talk with Zelenskyy.

"Definition of comeuppance /kum"up'?ns/noun

[Note: the quote below is from a quick internet search result which provided a link to the Wordnik page.]

"A punishment or retribution that one deserves; one's just desserts. An unpleasant experience a person endures, which is viewed by others as a just retribution for bad behavior; just deserts.

"'the Senator took bribes for years, and finally got his comeuppance when he was caught in a sting operation"

"A negative outcome which is justly deserved.

"The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition"

Among the examples on the right hand side of the Wordnik page is this:

"'If you love to hate the superrich, The Valet, a delectable comedy in which the great French actor Daniel Auteuil portrays a piggy billionaire industrialist facing his comeuppance, is a sinfully delicious bonbon,' writes Stephen Holden in the New York Times.

"GreenCine Daily: Interview. Francis Veber. 2007"

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Donuel
Date: 15 May 25 - 01:34 PM

It is impossible to suffer without making someone pay for it; every complaint already contains revenge. He who obeys, does not listen to himself!
Friedrich Nietzsche


There are advantages that suffering pain can bring about, but going to the depths of endurance is not required for enlightenment.
The kind of pain Trump will inflict upon the modest and poor is something Trump and his family will eventually pay for.

John Sauer has been before the Supreme Court advocating for Trump before. His vocal fry is not as bad as his cruel point of view.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: gillymor
Date: 15 May 25 - 11:51 AM

...and about the same time he told an interviewer (Howard Stern, I believe) that VD was his Viet Nam. What a hero.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 15 May 25 - 10:59 AM

The type of damage Trump is doing this time around is exponentially larger and more durable than when he was 45. It boils down to a lot of pushing back by the general population (and that boils down to a lot of people who don't think they have any skin in the game aren't paying attention as they also lose their rights.) Not a retiree, not a person of modest or no income needing health or housing assistance? Food stamps? The cost of the tariffs doesn't matter? Those folks have no idea what is about to hit them. They're largely the same group that didn't vote in the last election. Their silos are about influencers, hard news didn't make it into those echo chambers.

The Supreme Court is hearing arguments about the 16th Amendment case, the birthright citizenship that Trump is trying to say can't be available to babies born to non-citizens or undocumented immigrants. Whoever the lead attorney is in that Trump case has the most annoying case of vocal fry (worse even than RFK jr) that is really hard to listen to.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: gillymor
Date: 15 May 25 - 10:44 AM

Trump detractors have been making fun of "General Bone Spurs" since he slithered into the ring.

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 15 May 25 - 10:21 AM

Does that boil down to a ‘Yes’, ‘No’, or ‘Maybe’, Don?

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Donuel
Date: 15 May 25 - 10:17 AM

In this age of grievance politics, the revenge of the stupid has shown the smart people who is the boss. Free speech is being systematically abolished via media control, university control, citizenship control, and justice department control, leading to a nation of white men and no law.

The cost however is a destruction of all our innovation, invention, discovery, allies, market solvency, retail viability, intelligent security, scientific growth, a respect for history, and due process.

Grievance is beyond what could be blamed on the social justice silliness of the far left, but instead is a demand to bow to a King and have the wealthy join a procession to gift tribute to the King.

The threats of violence outnumber the targeted violence against our judges, lawyers, doctors, and scientists, but the floodgates of violence are only a moment away at the whim of a narcissist.

DH

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 15 May 25 - 06:22 AM

Just watched as much as I could stand of the Fat, Orange, Badly-coiffed Blowhard addressing US troops in Doha. I wonder if Americans recognise the incongruity and delicious irony of a five-times draft-dodger addressing serving members of their armed forces as their Commander-in-Chief?

Subject: RE: Convicted felon US 47 Pres /Musk coup 2
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 13 May 25 - 11:22 PM

The Trump family is raking in the dollars.

Business Expert Reveals How Much the Trumps Have Pocketed in Just Three Months—You Won’t Believe It

On Thursday, MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace sat down with business professor and podcast host Scott Galloway. What he revealed was jaw-dropping: “I think we essentially have become a kleptocracy that would make Putin blush. I mean, keep in mind that in the first three months, the Trump family has become $3 billion wealthier, so that’s a billion dollars a month.”

That’s not a typo. $3 billion. In three months.

Donald Trump is only a few months into what could be his second term as president, and the money is already pouring in—fast. Galloway made it clear: this isn’t normal, it’s not ethical, and it’s not happening in the dark. It’s happening in plain sight.

And it’s not just Trump. His sons, Don Jr. and Eric, are jet-setting around the Middle East—Qatar, the UAE, Saudi Arabia—cutting deals. According to The New York Times, those deals directly benefit their father.

Then there’s the $Trump meme coin—an absurd cryptocurrency Trump launched days before retaking office. Now he’s planning a private dinner at Mar-a-Lago for top investors in the coin. We don’t know who they are. We probably never will. But they’re buying access, and they’re getting it.

So how is Trump getting away with this?

It’s not just about weak Democrats or cowardly Republicans. The real answer, Galloway and others argue, is the right-wing media machine that shields him from scrutiny and spins every outrage into either a nothingburger or a badge of honor.